The Diclonius Prince
by ConfoederatioHelvetica
Summary: A young male Diclonius lies waiting, imprisoned in the bowels of the research facility, plotting. He has only one purpose, one goal in mind; wiping out humanity and propagating his own species at any cost. M for blood, gore, rape, and quasi-cannibalism.
1. FLUCHT: Escape

Subject 36 was silent as always, just hanging harnessed, or rather bound, in the glass tank, tubes feeding in through his nose supplying 36 with nutrients and oxygen to keep him alive at a bare minimum. He was covered in head to toe in bandages, in order to suppress his powers. The giant vault was dark, and empty except for the glass tank where he was kept like a specimen in alcohol, to be examined.

The steel doors to the vault slid open and two security guards entered. The light from outside the vault illuminated 36. The sight was eerie. They approached the tank; neither of them looked worried about nearing the Diclonius this close. Why would they? 36 hadn't moved in months, not ever since he had been delivered to the research facility. The two stared at the suspended body, their sub-machine guns hanging over their shoulder, nowhere near enough to quickly fire.

"Nothing out of the ordinary, as usual." One remarked lazily.  
>"Expecting anything else?"<br>"With these things you never know..." he muttered darkly.  
>"His companion dismissed the statement with a wave of his hand.<br>"Don't be so paranoid; thirty-six is the most complacent of all of them."  
>"Yeah, I'm glad that we've been assigned here, have you heard what one of the others did when she escaped?"<br>"Killed twenty-two of our colleagues in just five minutes, I know."  
>"Luckily for us most of them are dead now."<br>The second guard checked 36's vital signs.  
>"All normal. You were saying?"<br>He turned away from the monitor.  
>"Our life expectancy rose a lot since the death of seven, three, and thirty-five. Especially three..."<br>The two turned and walked back in the direction of the exit again. Their routine check-up had once again proved fruitless.  
>"I heard some pretty odd stuff about her you know?"<br>"Like what?"  
>"Well, that she was special in some way, like some kind of prized possession, you know, a leading personality."<br>"Like a queen?"  
>"Well... I guess you could call her that."<br>In the tank, 36 stirred.

He had slept for months, although sleep was not the right word for it. He had been in a self-induced coma ever since director Kakuzawa and the special assault team had captured him. He had not made it easy for them at all; otherwise they might have gotten suspicious. They had no knowledge of his powers whatsoever, not having been able to test him, and all attempts to revive him had been unsuccessful. If they had managed to note the extent of his abilities, they would have found that he had eight vectors, each with an unusually high range of seventeen meters. It had taken him months to get where he was now...months of planning, months of preparation. He had travelled far, he had run away from home, following his instincts, following the call of his sisters, of his queen, and after a very long and hard journey he reached Kamakura. His queen was now dead; he had felt the connection to her break just days after he had been brought here. Ever since he had been pondering. His original purpose was defeated, and the fate of his entire race now rested on his shoulders. The execution of his plan was vital. And now his time had come. His restraints broke, the tube feeding him snapped, and the glass tank exploded spilling the nutrient-saturated liquid over the floor. Immediately the alarm sounded, and 36 smiled. Time to begin phase one.

The two guards who had almost reached the exit turned around at the noise. They were taken completely by surprise; neither of them was reaching for his weapon.  
>"Wha-what's that?"<br>"There hasn't been an emergency in months, is this a drill?"  
>They noticed the slim, undernourished figure of 36 walking unsteadily towards them. He threatened to fall over, but instead was lifted off the ground, and floated towards them through the air.<p>

During the time in stasis, his muscle structure had declined rapidly, and he now walked only with the use of two of his vectors. Even if that hadn't been enough, his general appearance was frightening. Malnourishment had left him bony and skeletal. His skin was very white from not having seen daylight for such a long time, and wrinkled in places from the prolonged exposition to the liquid. His hair was bright white and his eyes icy-blue. He used to be mistaken for an albino, except that he had a far more sinister mutation than just the lack of the pigment melanin in his skin and retina.

The guards finally realized what was going on.  
>"Shit! Fire! Fire! Kill him!"<br>Bullets flew from their sub-machine guns at him, but they were deflected to hit the walls. "What the hell? He shouldn't be able to do that! They told us he didn't have any of those arms!  
>"Shut up and fire!"<br>The guns chattered away again, but 36 just stood there and waited, waited until they ran out of ammunition.  
>"Oh...we're screwed."<br>"RUN!"  
>They turned, but before taking a single step, fountains of blood exploded from their chests and they collapsed. 36 walked towards the two men he had slain. His bandages were slowly unraveling. He didn't like being this exposed, it made him feel weak and vulnerable. Before long he would need proper clothes. It was unsightly for him to walk around nude. He was the prince after all.<p>

* * *

><p>In his office, the director stood, looking out at the ocean through the large window. He had heard the alarm go off, and wondered which one it was this time. A distraught voice emanated from the speaker on his desk.<br>"_Director Kakuzawa, we have a problem."_  
>Kakuzawa turned.<br>"What is it?"  
>"<em>Our most recent acquisition is escaping. He just broke out of the container and killed his two guards."<em>  
>"Where is he now?"<br>"_Unclear sir, he seems to have disappeared, but he's not yet off the island."_  
>"Then see to it that he never leaves! We must not allow another Lucy, and thirty-six is just as important and potentially dangerous. I'm taking no chances here. He'll break our defenses, but we'll catch him before he reaches the mainland. Assemble the SAT; they know how to deal with him."<br>"_Yes sir."_  
>36 must not be allowed to escape, or humanity would be in more danger than if Lucy was still alive.<p>

* * *

><p>He walked through the brightly lit hallway, encountering no resistance, just a about two dozen guards whom he slaughtered with his vectors. He had given the inside of the facility a new paint coating in red, and it was all-natural. He felt the power humming through the walls and floor, and he knew where he had to go. He wasn't trying to escape, at least not yet; there was a different task to be completed, one that would benefit him greatly in the future. A door in front of him hissed and slid open, allowing a scientist to pass through. The man took one look up from his clipboard before his head twisted and tumbled onto the floor. The doors were about to close, and he wouldn't have any of it. The lifeless body smashed into the door control panel, making it come to a stop. He stepped through a gap and knew immediately that his senses had not let him down. It was the control room, the walls lined with monitors that were supervising the facility's different functions. And it was full of people. The security guards drew their pistols immediately and fired at him, but his vectors caught the bullets in mid-air and sent them right back to their owners. Each one penetrated the head of one of the guards perfectly, some taking away half the brain and skull when exiting, undoubtedly large caliber rounds like a .38. He approached a terminal and one of his vectors penetrated the machinery. Different text and schematics flashed up in fast sequence. All the scientists were frozen with shock, until one tried to push an alarm button concealed under a desk. His hand was bent in a way which it never should have and broke, the same happened to his forearm and upper arm and eventually his spine. Satisfied, he shorted out the machinery and parted, but he left a little gift behind. Several hand grenades rose from the bodies of the guards. The pins flew out and through four of the survivors, then the grenades were tossed into different directions. The door closed behind him only to be ripped off its rails and slammed against the opposite wall. Completed. Now for an escape.<p>

* * *

><p>"Go go go go!"<br>The whole troop of SAT members ran down the hallway to get to the landing pad and the chopper. Their plan was to intercept the escapee before he disappeared into the city. One member of the team was trailing behind the others.  
>"Wait! My shoelace-!" he tripped and fell headlong onto the floor. He suddenly found that the bottom section of his leg was missing.<br>"OW FUCK! Help me goddammit! He's here! He's here!"  
>But no one heard him.<br>36 approached the man lying on the floor. He needed his uniform to proceed, but no blood on it. His vector penetrated the man's head and broke and artery. Immediate death was the consequence, and no blood spilled. It was not entertaining, it did not satisfy his natural need for witnessing the pain of a human, but it was necessary. The soldier was stripped of his armor, helmet, and facemask, and camo gear. 36 put all of it on, noticing a tag on the inside collar of the shirt. 'Ageno' it said. Soon enough, 36 was the exact replica of the dead man at his feet. He may have been undernourished, the bulk of his uniform concealed it, and the facemask kept his identity hidden. He would find a way off the island which no one expected him to take. He hurried along the corridor where the rest of the SAT had gone, and came to the exit. Outside was a helicopter, ready for takeoff. 36 sprinted towards it. He saw the other soldiers sitting inside; many of them were giving him angry stares.  
>"Where the hell have you been you idiot? Get over here right now! There's not time to lose!" one of them shouted over the noise of the spinning blades.<br>36 was silent. He sat down on a free space in the hold, and tried to act inconspicuous. A bald man stood up and addressed them.  
>"Listen up! This time we might just be able to do everything right. Anyone screws up and I'll kill him personally. The Intel we've got on the target is not as much as I want. We're searching for a male this time, grey hair, blue eyes. He is armed with the same kind of weapon that all the others have been, but to the extent of those weapons they didn't tell me anything."<br>36 was pleased. This would make everything much easier for him.  
>"All we have to do is kill him, not capture!"<br>Oh. That was not so much fun.  
>"Avoid contact. Once you find him, contact the rest of the team. Do not engage him on your own!"<br>They had learned from previous mistakes presumably.  
>"We'll be patrolling along the coast in groups of two. You find him unconscious on the beach; put a bullet through his head. You find anyone else, dispose of them. We don't want any civilian involvement. Understood?"<br>"Sir, yes sir!"  
>36 stayed silent.<br>The bald man put a hand to his earpiece. He seemed to be getting more information form headquarters.  
>36 saw his eyes darting around at the soldiers. He was checking them. He turned white all of a sudden, and his hand began to shake ad he lowered it from the earpiece.<br>"Who came in last?" he asked in a shaking voice.  
>Oops. Very bad.<br>The bald man's eyes fell directly on him. He reached for his pistol, but before he could touch it, 36 sliced them off with one of his vectors. Before the rest of the SAT could react, eight more burst apart in fountains of blood, spattering their comrades and the interior of the hold. None of them ever got to fire. 36 ripped two torsos off and at the same time sliced through four necks and ripped open the ribcages of one more. One of his vectors snaked its way into the cockpit, where it decapitated the pilot. The helicopter careened in the air, now flying without any guidance. The few men who were still alive clung on as hard as they could. 36 regretted not being able to kill them all like they deserved, but he knew he had made sure that they were going to die anyway. He allowed himself to be catapulted out of the back of the helicopter, where he began to fall. They had been over the ocean, but in the distance 36 could already see the lights of the city. That was his destination. He broke the surface of the water with tremendous force, surfaced, and watched as the copter spiraled downwards, hitting the sea, and exploding into a million fragments.

Now he needed to reach the coast, and his vectors would help him. They hoisted him up over the water, and soon enough he was speeding in the direction of Kamakura, the victorious prince in all his glory.


	2. ZUSAMMENKUNFT: Reunion

He stood on the shore and looked out at the sea. He could not stay for long, because even if he had killed the whole SAT someone was bound to come and search for him. They would make a huge mistake in doing so, but he preferred to avoid any confrontation. Not because he didn't long for a fight, not because he didn't want to kill the vermin that was humanity, but because that was not his main objective. His new goal was to find another queen, and chances were that there was one trapped on the island. His queen was dead, that placed him as next in command. It fell to him to free his sisters from that horrible place, and now that he knew the facility from the inside out. It would make the execution of his next plan all too easy. So the time he spent in a coma was not a complete waste. He did suffer, he was still not able to stand on his own; two of his vectors acted as crutches and helped him walk upright. To the normal eye this was not visible however.  
>Where to now? He knew that there was another Diclonius here, one he had thought dead, one that everyone thought dead. And there was no trouble finding her at all, she openly used her vectors openly, but not for killing, which he thought very unusual. It was after all in their nature to kill humans.<br>He left the beach, walking up to the promenade. It was evening, and there wasn't anybody in sight. This was lucky for him since he was still dressed in the bloody remains of what used to be the uniform of the SAT soldier he killed. He followed his instincts, and presently reached the bottom of a flight of steps. She was close, very close. He looked around, searching for a likely hiding place. He ascended the stairway and stopped on the first landing. On his right was a very large house. She was in there, he felt it. What an unlikely retreat. He opened the door and stepped into a tidily kept courtyard. He was puzzled. The house was not derelict. It was well maintained. It didn't seem like a place to hide, more like an actual home. There were even a few pairs of shoes at the main door. It was lit, and he heard voices from the inside, testimony to the paper thing walls. He made sure that the helmet still covered his horns, just in case. He knocked. The voices were silent, and after a while he heard footsteps approaching. The door slid open and he saw a young woman of about nineteen with shoulder length brown hair.  
>"Eh…Hello can I help you?"<br>He just stared at her. This was not the one he was looking for, just a human.  
>"What is it Yuka?"<br>A male with black hair and around the same age joined her.  
>His reaction was different. He seemed to recognize him, which confused him since he had never seen this one in his entire life.<br>"Yuka, get away!" he told the woman before turning back to him "Leave us alone!"  
>He was even more confused.<br>"Kohta, what's wrong?" the woman asked the man.  
>"It's a soldier like the one who attacked me and Nyu!"<br>Now he understood. This one thought that he was a soldier of the SAT, and he could not blame him since he was still wearing the uniform. Yet he needed to be admitted if he wanted to find the Diclonius, so he reached up and removed the helmet and mask, revealing his horns.  
>"Wha…Wha…how?"<br>They both stared at him. He was satisfied with the result.  
>"Another one?" the woman whispered to the man.<br>"I can't believe it. Where did you come from?" the male asked him.  
>"Nana! Come here quick!"<br>Another person appeared, and he almost stopped breathing. This was who he was searching for, she was Diclonius, and there was no doubt. Pink hair pink eyes, and most of all, he could see her vectors. They were all busy moving her arms and legs. He assumed that they were prosthetic. The Diclonius girl was looking at him in wonder, and then she suddenly fell to her knees.  
>"Nana! What are you doing?"<br>He was pleased. She recognized his position.  
>Her vectors snaked on the floor, facing upwards in a gesture of humility.<br>"Nana, do you know him?" the woman asked.  
>"No. He is the prince. We have to let him in, please?"<br>The man scratched the back of his head.  
>"Well…it's always been a large house…I think he can move in. What do you think Yuka?"<br>"At least it's not another girl…"  
>"Nana, you said you didn't know him, but you said he was the prince. What do you mean?"<br>One of his vectors raced towards Nana and penetrated her head. Her eyes grew unfocused for a second as she received a message from him, but then she regained herself. He retraced the vector.  
>"Nothing"<br>"What's your name?"  
>He remained silent.<br>"Can you speak?"  
>He thought it appropriate to give a reply, so he shook his head.<br>"Oh…"  
>This was indeed a problem he realized. As much as he despised the humans, he needed their cooperation for now, so he needed to find a solution. He had an idea. Another vector drifted towards Nana's head. It entered, and they established a connection.<br>"I…I can hear what he says. He's speaking to me, he say that this is the only way he can talk to you."  
>The humans looked confused. They were simple-minded creatures.<br>"Okay…what does he say?"  
>"He says…he says that you can call him Ageno…and he thanks you for letting him stay."<br>"Well isn't that wonderful. Come inside Ageno."  
>Terribly easy.<br>"We were just eating, would you like to join us? Then afterwards you can go have a bath."  
>"And get rid of those clothes. They remind me of something I'd rather not remember."<br>That was a request he had no objection at all to following, even though it did come from a human, because the clothing stank even more of human.

* * *

><p>Director Kakuzawa sat at his desk, tapping his fingers impatiently on the desk, waiting for someone to tell him the worst. And he wasn't to be disappointed. A scientist in a white lab oat entered, looking composed, even though it was obvious from his stance that he knew Kakuzawa was going to be angry.<br>"Speak" the director told him simply.  
>"He somehow managed to break lose from his harness even though he was restrained and we kept feeding him large doses of tranquilizer that should have effectively sedated him even though he was in a comatose state. Somehow he must have surpassed the drug in a way that we are unaware of because we were never able to test him. This begs the question whether any of the others are capable of the same."<br>"How did he manage to escape so easily? I thought that after the last time we were prepared for something like that. You told me yourself that escape was impossible, especially now that there was not traitor on the inside to aid him."  
>"So I thought, but we were evidently wrong. He seems to be much stronger than the rest. That he is male must be the cause of his strength."<br>"What about our casualties?"  
>"He killed thirty of our personnel, and it took him barely four minutes to exit the facility."<br>Kakuzawa lowered his heat to his hands.  
>"Even deadlier than Lucy…"<br>"I am afraid so. And more cunning."  
>"A male mutant. This was the first time that we found one."<br>"We analyzed his genetic structure, and we found that he was pure, uncontaminated by human influence, just like Lucy. We assumed that he was the orphaned child, but any further theories concerning his origins are merely based on speculation. We marked him out as special, and we assume that the fact that he came here form wherever he might have been had something to do with the similarity between himself and Lucy."  
>"He planned this escape. He could have never done it so perfectly without preparation."<br>"He knew that we would be awaiting him once he reached land, so he took the place of a member of the Special Assault Team. When we found the body, we informed the team's captain, hoping that they might be able to detain him. We were wrong again. He destroyed the helicopter and it crashed into the ocean. There were no survivors."  
>Kakuzawa gritted his teeth.<br>"And there's more, am I right?"  
>"Unfortunately so, director. Thirty-six is now in possession of the schematics of our facility."<br>"WHAT?"  
>"He broke into the control room, killing all present, and then proceeded to retrieve the files. We assume he is in possession of very advanced cognitive skills, for he knew exactly which route to take in order to escape."<br>"Do we have any means of tracking him?"  
>"No sir, we do not. But he might have left the region already. He was captured once; I do not believe that he wants to repeat the mistake."<br>"No, he is still around. He memorized those files for a reason, but I wonder which one? He must be eliminated immediately."  
>"We have no one left to fulfill a mission like that. The only ones who could have stood a chance against thirty-six were the Special Assault Team."<br>"You are wrong. There is one person who would be more than willing to hunt for Diclonius. Find him and bring him here. We require his expertise. Tell him that he will receive whatever he demands."  
>"Yes director." The scientist bowed and left.<br>Kakuzawa hoped that he was correct and that this man was still alive, and that he was indeed capable of facing down the Diclonius princeps.

* * *

><p>All were staring at him with open eyes. He saw the woman called Yuka drop a rice ball from her hands. So what? He may have been shoveling food in his mouth without bothering with the sticks, and he may have not even been chewing, but after starving for two moths while travelling, and being fed for three months through a tube after that it was natural to feel hungry. He held out his empty bowl.<br>"Sorry…there is no more." Yuka said.  
>He set the bowl down on the table.<br>Of course, they must have not been prepared for another guest, least of all someone with an appetite like his.  
>"Nana, tell us who he is! I don't like this, just taking him in without question."<br>Yuka looked slightly angry.  
>"You were alright with it when it was Nyu whom we took in. Or Mayu. Or Nana. I think we should give him an equal opportunity."<br>She smiled at him, and he blinked confused, but was satisfied. This female, Yuka, she was on his side.  
>"He…he says that he'll answer any questions you have for him. He doesn't want you to mistrust him. And he says that the food was delicious, that he never had anything that tasted this good, and he thanks the cook."<br>Yuka turned red. He smiled. Exactly what he thought.  
>"It's nothing special…"<br>This time Kohta looked slightly angry.  
>"Well then 'Ageno'. Nana, ask him where he came from."<br>He frowned at the male's comment. Nana was his instrument, nothing else.  
>"He says that you can speak to him directly, even if he doesn't speak to you."<br>"Okay, where are _you_ from, Ageno?"  
>He thought about it. How much could he tell them? Everything he needed to and nothing that he didn't. It would be better if they trusted him, or at least knew him better. He could have just slaughtered them all, but he had a feeling that his sister Diclonius Nana liked it here, and he didn't want to cause her discomfort. Besides, if things went too far, he could still kill them all if he wished.<br>"He says that he's travelled from a far away place to here because he received a call to duty. He says that his queen called him."  
>"His queen? Who is your queen?" Yuka asked.<br>"He says that she is the one you call Nyu."  
>"Nyu? She was his queen?"<br>"He says yes."  
>"And why did he search for her?"<br>"He says because he's the prince, and that was what he was born for."  
>"Where is Nyu by the way?" the man named Kohta asked.<br>"She was just out walking with Wanta and Mayu; they seem to like each other." Yuka replied.  
>What? The queen was still alive? Impossible! He had felt her die, he was sure. He would know if she was still alive. But then, he was sure that these human were telling the truth, and he did believe his sister Diclonius. If she was still alive, just hiding form him once again like she did before, then this was very good news indeed! This simplified his goal by a wide range, now that he didn't have to go search for another. He heard a sliding door, several pairs of footsteps and the yapping of a small dog. They were here, but still he felt nothing. Yuka smiled when she saw the tense expectation in his face<br>"They're back! Let's introduce them to our newest guest. I'm sure that you and Nyu will be glad to see each other Ageno."  
>More than she knew...<br>He saw two shapes approaching through the wall, and he grew even more nervous. Was he worthy of her? How many others had followed the call, and how many had she possibly rejected?  
>Yuka stood up and opened the door to the dining room.<br>"I'm so glad you're back. We've got a guest today."  
>She stood aside to admit the new arrivals.<br>There entered two girls, and both immediately stopped at the sight of him. He mirrored their expressions of complete surprise. He was sure that they showed this reaction because of his general appearance, especially his horns and his uniform. The one with the pink hair and red eyes was undoubtedly his queen. But there was something odd about her. Although she recognized him as a member of her own species, he didn't, for the simple reason that she lacked her horns. How was this possible? He saw her vectors. They were not hovering around as they should have been. Instead, she was dragging them along the floor. Then he saw that while she may not have had horns, she had stumps on her head where horns should have been. What had happened to her? Who had taken away her horns and her ability to control her vectors? If it had been the humans then he would kill them all in the name of his queen. Strangely it was the other girl who caught his attention more, and it irritated him. He knew her form somewhere, he was sure. The look of recognition and horror on her face made it all to clear that they had seen each other before, and now he remembered as well...


	3. GERECHTIGKEIT: Justice

It was raining. He was walking along the road; his clothes tattered and torn form the long journey. He was very tired. Even his vectors were hanging limply by his side. But he had to carry on; he had to find his queen, so that they might be united. He took shelter and paused for a moment under the protruding roof of a house. The ocean, that's where he needed to go, he knew that if he found the ocean, he would find his queen for sure. He heard an engine start up and pressed himself flat against the wall of the house. A car appeared in the driveway, and rolled past him onto the road. He just had a brief moment to see that the driver was a woman before the car disappeared. He looked to where the vehicle had come from, and surely enough there was a garage door slowly closing. His vectors shot our and pried the doors open with ease. He entered the house; glad to be in the warmth. If he was lucky, there was no one else here, and he would be able to steal some desperately needed supplies and dry his clothes before moving on. He heard a murmur from the second floor, and readied his vectors for an attack, but no one showed. Natural curiosity took over and he sneaked up the stairs. The house was mostly dark, but a door to one room was open and a sliver of light was seen from inside.  
>He heard a man's voice emanating from behind the door.<br>"That's my girl."  
>He went up and looked through the crack into the room. He saw a middle-aged man sitting on a bed, and in front of him a young girl of barely fourteen years old. He stared in horror as the girl dropped her pants on the floor. There was only a woolen pullover covering her nudity now. She gripped the remaining piece of clothing, ready to pull it off as well, but then stopped.<br>"What's wrong? Take it all off." the man asked annoyed.  
>"I…" she stuttered.<br>"Hmm?"  
>"I…I'M NOT GONNA DO IT ANYMORE!" she cried and bolted for the door.<br>"Mayu! Come back here!" the man shouted.  
>She stormed past him without taking any notice, heading for the stairs. The man was on her heels though and he was much faster. He also passed him, and had almost caught up to the girl. He was furious. Never had he witnessed something as despicable, something as atrocious as he had just seen. To have a man do that to a mere child, a girl, was unforgivable. It didn't seem like the first time either; they seemed to have a routine. He felt deep sympathy for her, and nothing but hatred at the man who violated her. The man had almost reached her as his right leg parted company with the rest of his body. Blood spurted at the walls and onto the floor, spraying from severed arteries. The man fell face-forward onto his nose, which broke immediately. He screamed in pain and clutched the stump where his leg had been moments before.<br>"AHHH FUCK! IT HURTS! IT HURTS!"  
>Blood was leaking out from the wound, staining the polished wood floor and forming a large puddle around the wounded man.<br>He approached the maimed, slowly, and with anger oozing from his every pore as if it were a liquid. His vectors, although the man couldn't see them, were held up menacingly behind his back, like scorpion stings, waiting to strike. The man noticed him…and his horns.  
>"Wha-What the hell are you? What are you doing in my house? Get out you freak! Oh God!"<br>He rocked back and forth in his pain.  
>"Did you do this to me you little monster? Why?"<br>The girl was still there, and watching him with horror in her eyes. He wished her to go away, it embarrassed him to have to do this in front of her. But if she wanted to watch as he killed her tormentor, then he would not hesitate. He looked at the pitiful human in front of him. That one needed to be punished.  
>He came closer.<br>"Get away from me!"  
>The man tried to crawl towards the stairs, but two of his vectors shot out and ripped off his arms.<br>"AHHH!" the man yelled.  
>He rolled onto his back. He saw terror in the human's eyes, and rightfully so. What he had done was unforgivable, and now he would suffer the consequences.<br>"WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? PLEASE STOP! I BEG YOU!"  
>He had not been punished enough, there was one more thing.<br>Another vector shot out towards the man, and he screamed in agony.  
>A dark red stain had appeared on the pants between his legs, and was spreading fast.<br>"AH FUCK! MY BALLS! MY BALLS! YOU RIPPED THEM OFF! YOU-! YOU-!"  
>He passed out from blood loss and pain. He hoped that the man would never wake up again. The girl had been watching the entire time, and now she was backing away down the stairs. Several flecks of blood had come her way and dotted her young face. Then she turned and ran. Where, he did not know, but he was sure that wherever she went, it was sure to be better than this place. He looked at the corpse. This was strange, anomalous. He had never killed to help a human before, so why had he done it now? He questioned his act at first, but then he didn't doubt that it had been the right thing to do.<br>He left the house a while later, the rain had stopped, but he was still dressed in the same clothes as before, just now they were stained with blood. He resumed his march towards the ocean, towards his queen.


	4. VERSCHWOERUNG: Conspiracy

He remained silent however, and so did she. It was probably for the best that they did not mention their run-in from before, it would only complicate things unnecessarily, and at the moment that was the last thing he needed. Anyway, she was not important, just another primate. What mattered was the queen. That she had lost her horns was tragic. She was only a Diclonius through her genetics now, not able to control her vectors, not able to kill with them. Not able to reproduce on her own. But at least they could fulfill their duty to their species together. He saw only puzzlement in her eyes…strange, she looked oddly innocent. He knew that looks could deceive, but from what he had heard she had killed numerous humans, and that viciousness must have shown, but it did not. Nyu tilted her head to one side, still with that innocent look of puzzlement on her face  
>"Nyu?"<br>This did not seem good.  
>Yuka went over to her.<br>"Nyu, meet Ageno. He says that he knows you."  
>"A-ge-no?"<br>This was not at all the reaction he had expected.  
>"Apparently she doesn't know him." Kohta concluded smugly.<br>"He says that he never said he knew her, only that he came here because of her. He says that this is the first time they meet."  
>Kohta frowned.<br>"And for what exactly?"  
>"He says for their species."<br>Yuka looked puzzled.  
>"Eh…Species?"<br>"He says that there is a lot you don't know, that he himself didn't know until he escaped himself."  
>Kohta grew steadily more agitated at the truths that were laid bare in this conversation.<br>"Escaped?"  
>"I think that we have a right to know what exactly is going on, since we have now three of you in the house, don't you think Ageno?"<br>Yuka seemed like the most in intelligent of the bunch, but she was in no position to make any demands! How could she dare? But if they wanted to know that they and their inferior kin were going to be obliterated soon enough, then he would tell them. Nana would act as his medium, serving him, her rightful duty. After he had finished talking through Nana, Yuka stared at him with horror.  
>"So, you're all part of a new species, that wants to wipe out humanity to make space for themselves?"<br>Correct.  
>This was too much for Kohta.<br>"This is crazy! Now I see why they wanted to kill you, and I'm starting to think I should have let them, that we should have never taken Nyu in in the first place!"  
>"Nyu?"<br>This ape was finally catching on. He had doomed himself by helping his queen. Maybe in the end she would kill him quickly in gratitude.  
>"There must be another way, can't we live side by side? Without needing to kill each other."<br>The human female named Yuka did not seem to get the point.  
>"He says that that's not possible. Higher species have always hunted and killed lower ones. He says that humans had been the rulers of this planet for long enough, that it the time had come for them to be replaced."<br>She thought for a moment.  
>"I see…so in the end, you want to kill us all?"<br>"He says that we may need a few humans in order to infect them and help produce more members of the species, that that will be your role in future, giving birth to more Diclonius."  
>Meanwhile, Kohta had risen from his seat.<br>"You're mad! All three of you!"  
>"He says that naturally you wouldn't accept this, but that we are going to fight, and in the end, we will win. He says that your defeat is inevitable. He says that he already killed scores of humans without much effort, and even an army couldn't stop us when we are together."<br>"Is that all? And how do you think of doing that? There are only three of you!"  
>He thought that this had gone far enough. He did not need to answer that question, they might want to stop him, and he could not use that. He had an obligation to the imprisoned. Now that they knew their ultimate plans, they could as well be made helpful in them, whether they wanted to be or not. Three of his vectors stretched out to each of the humans. They would be the first to serve their race.<br>"No!"  
>His vectors were beaten aside by others, which had come from nowhere. He looked at Nana and saw her concentrating hard, one of his vectors still connecting them. She had somehow escaped his control and prevented him from infection the humans, but for what reason? Whatever it was, she could be dealt with later. His four remaining vectors shot out and clamped themselves around hers, preventing them from stopping him again. Then he set about the task he had already attempted.<br>"NO!"  
>Nana threw himself at him, ignoring the fact that her vectors could not move her prosthetics. Her arms and legs parted company with her body, but she had gained enough momentum to smash into him. He landed hard on the floor with Nana's tear-streamed face directly in front of his eyes.<br>"Don't do it! Please!" she pleaded.  
>How could she dare? Why did she protect these primates?<br>"Wha- What just happened?" Yuka asked.  
>They had not felt anything. Nyu on the other hand, was happily oblivious to everything that was happening, just sitting there and smiling indulgently.<br>"Don't do it! They don't deserve it!"  
>Nana was still lying on top of him. He was too shocked to move. It dawned on him that she was not the typical Diclonius. She had grown soft, obedient. It must have been something that happened to her in the facility. She had no desire to kill humans, she even protected them. This was treachery to their species.<br>One of his vectors lifted her up off him and held her in the air, and then he got up himself. He looked at the suspended Diclonius with disdain. She was still crying. Kohta made to move towards him, which would have been very unwise, but Nyu held him back.  
>"Kohta!"<br>Kohta stayed, and glared at Ageno, who was still standing there, indecisive of what to do. Should he kill her? Even if she was a member of his species, she was far too human to be tolerated. She had protected the others from his infection. She was rather useless now. The vector tightened its grip around her neck. She was slowly chocking.  
>"NANA!" Kohta shouted, trying to wind himself out of Nyu's grip, but now Yuka intervened.<br>"You'll get yourself killed! This is a conflict between them!"  
>A quiet rattling came out of Nana's mouth, she was gasping for air. He could kill her…but then, maybe she could still be useful in future. She could still fulfill her role, and that she was obedient counted for her, her loyalty just had to be changed. Sadly, there was nothing more he could cut off, and maiming her would make her even less useful to him than she already was. Nana's body was tossed into a corner, where she lay, sobbing and shivering. The rest of them just stood, gaping at him. He turned to leave, and a vector penetrated Nana's forehead once more. She lifted her head, and croaked almost inaudibly.<br>"He says…he's going to rest…" then she collapsed.  
>Ageno left the room and went upstairs.<br>They all sat around the table, Yuka was tending to Nana. Kohta looked livid.  
>"You see now? We can't allow him to stay! He's a danger to us all!"<br>Yuka carefully finished wrapping a bandage around Nana's head, then looked at Kohta.  
>"He's different, that's all. We know that he's not human, that kind of thing is normal to them maybe."<br>"Normal? That's not normal! Look what he did to Nana! How can you defend him?"  
>"Please…" Nana whispered feebly "Don't…He's the prince…"<br>"And what's that supposed to mean? You said that before! Why is he 'the prince'?"  
>Nana just shook her head.<br>"Fine, don't tell me. You're one crazy bunch!"  
>"Nyu was once that way too you know, she was worse even." Yuka commented.<br>Kohta was silenced.  
>"I… I know him." Mayu said.<br>Everyone's faces turned towards her.  
>"What did you say?" asked Kohta.<br>"I've seen him before…"  
>Yuka looked concerned.<br>"Why didn't you tell us?"  
>"I…I was scared…"<br>"When was this?" Kohta demanded.  
>"The night I ran away from home…" her eyes glazed over.<br>"Mom was out, and dad was…he was…"  
>Yuka put a hand on her shoulder.<br>"Then I ran. He was after me, and then he wasn't. And when I turned, I saw him, dead on the floor, and that other one, standing over him. Then I ran and kept running."  
>Comprehension dawned on Yuka's face.<br>"So that's why your mother gave you up so freely. She thought you were her competition for the attention of your step-father, and she associated you with his death."  
>Kohta looked thoughtful.<br>"Come to think of it, I once read something about a man getting killed in a very brutal way. It was a while ago, but the killer was never found."  
>"That killer has Ageno then."<br>Kohta's attitude suddenly changed again.  
>"But then, we need to hand him over to the police!"<br>"We can't do that! He'd kill them all! And us too if we tried!" Yuka protested.  
>You saw what Nyu could do, and you just realized that he was behind that murder, is that not reason enough to be cautious?"<br>"I don't think that we should keep him here just because we're afraid of him, we can't just allow him to terrorize us!"  
>"No…we can't. I'll talk with him, maybe he'll tell me more."<br>Yuka stood up and started to walk out of the room.  
>"And how exactly are you going to talk to him? Have you forgotten that he can't speak?"<br>"Oh, yeah. Well, I'm sure we'll find some solution to that, I'm sure he can write what he thinks, besides-"  
>She gave Nana a worried look.<br>"I don't think that I should bring those together any time soon. He might kill her if he gets the chance. You should all go to sleep, we've got school tomorrow, remember?"  
>"Yeah yeah, I'm going. Yuka, be careful, okay?"<br>She smiled at him.  
>"Sure"<br>She left the room and ascended the steps. The house had ten rooms, and she checked every door she passed until there was only one left.  
>She knocked.<br>"Ageno?"  
>There was no answer.<br>"Ageno, if you're there, please let me in, I want to talk to you."  
>Still there was nothing.<br>Yuka took a deep breath and slid the door open.  
>The room was empty, but the window was open. She hurried over and looked outside. He was nowhere to be seen. Yuka ran past Kohta on her way down.<br>"What is it?" he said in alarm.  
>"Ageno, he's gone, he went out the window, and I'm going to go look for him."<br>"Why?"  
>"Because I want answers!"<br>She slipped into her shoes and left.

He stared out at the ocean. He could still hear them, he could feel their pain as if it was his own, and he could feel their anger, their bloodlust. Soon he would be able to free them all, soon.  
>He heard rapid footsteps on the sand behind him, and turned, his vectors ready to attack. But it was only the human named Yuka.<br>"There you are! Why did you leave?"  
>He could not rest with his sisters imprisoned.<br>Should he kill her? But then…why did she come looking for him? There was no reason for her to. She stood next to him, also gazing out at the ocean.  
>"I thought you might be out here. The shore seems to be the place where we find you the most often…your kind I mean."<br>Only because it was the closest he could get to the facility without swimming.  
>"I wanted to talk to you."<br>So that was it, the reason she had gone looking.  
>"But of course, we have a problem there…since you can't talk. I can ask you questions, and you can just say yes or no, okay?"<br>There was a far easier way for communication. One of his vectors extended towards her. He suddenly gripped Yuka by the shoulders, so that she wouldn't move.  
>"Hey! Let go!"<br>She struggled, but he was far too strong.  
>The vector penetrated her forehead and her eyes grew wide. Her struggling stopped.<br>_You can hear me?_  
>"Yes" she answered, her eyes out of focus.<br>_This may be painful, but it is the only way that I can talk to you. Consider it trade, pain for information. You can ask what you want, but I may not answer, and if things go too far, I might kill you, so be careful what you say._  
>"How is this possible?"<br>_Telepathy, a skill that all of us have. Nana has it, the queen at least had it. We use it to control our vectors, and as you can see, for communication._  
>"What are you?"<br>_An odd question, considering that you lived with two of my kind for months now. We are the Diclonius, the next stage in human evolution._  
>"You're…not human?"<br>_Obviously. I wonder why the girl Mayu hasn't told you…you've been living under one roof with two of my kind for months._  
>"Why are you here?"<br>_Because evolution decided that it had to move on._  
>"So you've evolved, you're not experiments, mutants?"<br>_We're a new species, the Diclonius. I don't think you would understand._  
>"Even if I'm at a university that is not of such a high quality, I'm still smart enough to understand something like that!"<br>_What I tell you is the sum of both what I've known instinctively, and found out when I escaped._  
>"Tell me everything."<br>_Evolution happens by chance, a random mutation. It gets passed on, and multiplied. It helps the individual survive better then its competitors._  
>"That's nothing new."<br>_Be quiet unless you want your head removed. With us it was different, suddenly many of us appeared, I don't know why or how, but it happened. We are destined to eventually replace humans as the dominant species, to create our own society. We are born to kill humans. Of course, humans wouldn't want that, so they searched for us, killed or captured the ones they found and experimented on us in the most gruesome of ways. Testing our vector strength by firing projectiles at us with increasing force. Nana would have so much to tell on the subject._  
>"That's horrible!"<br>_It's only natural that you should be afraid. After all, we will kill you all. I was not captured, I was too far away for them to find me, and doctors who examined me thought that I had a rare sickness. Others were not so lucky. They were taken to a research facility, situated on an island, somewhere out there in that bay._  
>"I see…so that's why we found Nyu here, and why you came here."<br>_At this very moment, many of my kind are trapped there, being experimented on. I can hear their screams. They call to me._  
>"And you…"<br>_I want to free them, and I will._  
>"To save your species."<br>_Not only to save our kind, we have to destroy humanity._  
>"Isn't there a way we can live together in peace?"<br>_No, you all have to die._  
>"But why?"<br>_Thirty five thousand years ago, the Neanderthal died out. Do you know why?_  
>"No"<br>_A new species arose, one that began to dominate the lands, which forced the Neanderthal into a bottleneck and eventually wiped them out. That species was you, the Homo sapiens, the modern human. _  
>"I see…"<br>_Now the same will happen again, with us rising as the dominant species, the Homo Diclonius._  
>"And why is Nyu so important in this?"<br>_Because she is the queen._  
>"And you're the prince, I know, but what does the mean?"<br>_The scientists classified us, analyzed our society, one that doesn't even exist yet. However, their findings were correct. Nyu is the queen, regina. She is the authoritarian figure, she gives us commands, and we obey. I am the princeps, my role is to secure that our species has fertile offspring. The regina can give birth to Diclonius alone, but they cannot reproduce in term. The rest of the Diclonius are artifices, they carry out the orders, they are the workers and the warriors._  
>"Like…bees."<br>_What?_  
>"You're like bees."<br>_Really? Can bees tear your limbs apart?_  
>"No…but I meant…your society. And there's only one princeps?"<br>_Only one…until the regina sees fit to kill the last one._  
>"What?"<br>_That is our society._  
>"And you're willing to do that?"<br>_Why shouldn't I be?_  
>"You're even dumber than Kohta!"<br>_Watch what you say, all it takes is for me to move an artery in your brain._  
>"S-sorry…but I can't believe that you would do that."<br>_I didn't expect you to. But it was what I was born for, and if the regina sees fit to kill me because I'm no longer needed, then so be it, for my species._  
>"But there's going to be a problem…Nyu is not who she used to be. Sever since she lost those horns…"<br>_Her genetics are still perfectly acceptable. She will perform her duty regardless whether she can control her vectors or not, and until there is a queen which is not defective, I can make sure that there will be enough artifices born to human parents._  
>"Well…I guess that makes sense, but I think you're going to be disappointed."<br>_Nonsense._  
>"You said that your sisters are trapped on that island out there…"<br>_It is an affectionate term, they're all artifices. But I need them._  
>"And how do you plan to free them?"<br>_That is none of your business. All you need to know is that they will be free. If you want to live, I suggest that you get away from here, as far away as possible._  
>"But, why?"<br>_Once they have all been freed, we will be going on a rampage, a genocidal mission. There will be bloodshed, lots of it, and I will enjoy it. The army will be called of course, and that is when things will get really fun._  
>"You call killing fun?"<br>_It is genetic. We all see it that way._  
>"Nana isn't like that!"<br>_She is a deviation from the norm._  
>She was silent after that.<br>He withdrew his vector from her head, and she gasped in pain. She rubbed her temples.  
>"That hurt."<br>Of course, what did she expect? At least she was not killed, she should have been grateful for that.  
>"I think that we should go back home. It's cold out here, and you're still wearing that uniform."<br>He did. He had stopped noticing. After all, it didn't smell like primate anymore. It was probably best to return back anyway. He could use the rest after his turbulent escape. And soon he would set his sisters free, so that their race might rise. But before that, there was one more thing to be done in the dead of night.  
>"Come on."<br>Yuka beckoned. He smiled and followed her. One of his vectors snaked towards her, and penetrated her back. She grew rigid and collapsed. Foolish human, what did she expect? She had offered herself on a silver platter, and he had complied, the exact way he was born to do. She would be the first mother of the next generation of Diclonius artifices. He could not return back to the house without her. That would raise unnecessary suspicion, even though carrying her would be a nuisance. He picked her up. He noticed that he had recovered his strength quickly and had no difficulties at all lifting the human, partially due to her cooking probably. As he walked, step after step back, Yuka stirred slightly. Her eyes wondered upwards to see who was carrying her, and she saw his determined face. Almost gratefully, she sank back into her stupor.

* * *

><p>Director Kakuzawa sat behind his desk, his elbows propped up on its surface, the tips of his fingers together, staring expectantly at the door at the other end. He heard shuffling and scraping, the sound of shouting, a struggle, then the door opened and there entered two men, restraining a third one in their midst. Two of them were security guards of the facility, trying desperately to keep the third, dressed in civilian clothing, from escaping. He was the one causing the noise, cursing at his captors and trying to free him with as much strength as he could.<br>"LET ME GO YOU SONS OF BITCHES! WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT WITH ME! I SAID LET ME GO YOU BASTARDS!"  
>The man stopped his attempts to escape when he saw Kakuzawa however. He just stared blankly at him. The director waved at the two guards dismissively. They relinquished their grasp and exited the room. Kakuzawa waited patiently until the door had closed before speaking.<br>"You are the man known only as Bando?"  
>"Who wants to know that?" Bando retorted angrily.<br>Kakuzawa ignored the question.  
>"You are a former member of the SAT stationed here?"<br>"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?"  
>"I am the director of this research facility, and I have an offer for you. We are in need of someone with your…talents."<br>"And why should I give a fuck about what you have to say?"  
>"Your arm and eyes are both cybernetic, you've been mutilated. I paid for the surgery because I thought you were a valuable soldier, but you ran away before you could be put back into service."<br>"After what happened, I wasn't gonna work for you anymore!"  
>"Now you are penniless, and still full of unsatisfied revenge. I can help you on both cases."<br>Now Bando was listening.  
>"I hear?"<br>"Very recently another one of or subjects escaped, one that is potentially more dangerous than all of the others still here put together. We want you to kill him."  
>"How am I supposed to kill him? The team can take care of it."<br>"They were all killed while trying to prevent the subject from leaving this facility."  
>"And what makes you think that I'll do any better than a whole squad?"<br>"You are better than any of those soldiers were by a large margin, and you will have access to any piece of equipment you wish for."  
>"Say, if I were to accept, what would I get out of the deal?"<br>"You will be generously rewarded. Your name will be wiped from our records and you can begin a normal life with a pension of four hundred million Yen."  
>"That's quite an offer."<br>"Indeed a generous one. We would not be making this proposition if the situation were not serious. The whole of humanity would depend on your success."  
>"So, kill the monster, save humanity, and get loads of cash for it?"<br>"Do we have a deal?"  
>Bando though for a moment, then smiled maliciously.<br>"Consider it done. After all, I still have an old score to settle myself."


	5. STILLE: Silence

„Bye! See you tonight!"  
>Ageno was woken by the distant calls of Yuka. As he opened his eyes he discovered that it was already bright day. He recalled the previous evening's events. He had carried Yuka home and put her in bed, without waking the others. Had Kohta seen them he would have been immediately suspicious, but the secret was safe yet. Even Yuka would not remember…at least, for all he knew. He got up and exited his room. So, the three humans had gone to their university and school respectively, leaving him with the regina Lucy and the artifex Nana?<p>

Kohta looked anxiously over his shoulder back at the house.  
>"And you're sure that it will be fine? Remember what happened yesterday?"<br>Yuka was not as concerned.  
>"Nyu and Nana aren't in any danger with him around. After all, they're the same species, and I think that Ageno calmed down yesterday. That Nyu couldn't remember him must have frustrated him."<br>"What exactly did you two talk about when you found him yesterday? You were gone for quite some time."  
>"That's a matter between him and I, Kohta, mind your own business."<br>"What? I was just asking…"  
>Their voices trailed off.<p>

Ageno watched the three disappear down the steps. A satisfied smile curled his lips. Now he was free to roam as he pleased. He felt someone approach him and instinctively knew that it was Nana. She knelt down beside him and bowed her head.  
>"Prince" she said, humbly "I am at your command. Yuka left a message for you; she thought you would be able to read it."<br>He snatched the note from her hands. He scanned the page but couldn't decipher the symbols, so he passed it back to Nana. She took it from him and began to read aloud.  
>"Good morning Ageno, I left some food out for you, in case you get hungry. Nana can cook if you need anything more. Please don't hurt anyone, okay? And stay in the house, we don't want you to get lost somewhere. Yuka."<br>He was not allowed to leave the premises? How could she make such unreasonable demands? Well, he was going out to scout the area and plan his rescue operation, whether she liked it or not.  
>"Uhm…prince…?"<br>He looked disdainfully at her. She had disrupted his thoughts. She avoided his gaze, turning her head away completely.  
>"You should think about wearing something before you do anything else."<br>_Ah. _  
>He looked down at his toes and saw that he was indeed not wearing anything. After months without proper clothing he had almost lost his sense of self-consciousness. Ageno tipped Nana lightly with his foot.<br>_Fetch me something._  
>"Right away!" she squealed and scrambled to her feet. He heard her running around the house, searching from something suitable.<br>_Now, where was the regina?_  
>Moments later, Nana returned with a pile of clothes in her arms.<br>"Here!" she said and held out what she had managed to scavenge.  
>To him it looked reasonably well put together, so he put the clothes on. He noticed immediately that they were Kohta's, since both the pants and the shirt were too small for him, but they had to do.<br>"Nyu?"  
>Nyu poked her head around a corner and stared at him, still in the process of getting dressed. He would have to somehow find a way to return her to normal. Without her, everything would be lost. He did not see any way he could restore her, but he at least had to do something. He finished, but noticed that there was a flaw in his disguise. The horns were clearly visible through is short white hair. Nana had clearly thought of this, since she held out and old sun-hat.<br>He looked outside. The weather was not particularly good, and the hat did not fit with the rest of the clothing, but that was a risk he was going to have to take. He could not kill all the humans he laid eyes upon. Yet. Not on his own. It was time for a little reconnaissance. A vector of his penetrated Nana's head, relaying exact orders. Should she fail to meet his demands, he would kill her. She bowed her head in acceptance.  
>"Yes, prince."<br>Satisfied, he slid open the door and left.

Nana watched him go, feeling only admiration for him. The graceful way he walked. How he carried his vectors, with such ease. He may have tried to kill her, but that was because she was abnormal and she knew it. She was glad that he had not killed her, and that she was able to repay him for his kindness by following his orders. The commands he had given her were simple. She was to clean up the queen as much as possible, so that when he returned, he would find her looking as noble as her genetics determined her to be. She turned away from the sight of her superior and grabbed Nyu by the hand.  
>"Time for a bath!" she said merrily.<p>

* * *

><p>A boat left from the island off the coast of Kamakura. A small craft with only one motor. Any other means of transport were destroyed, at least according to the director. The boat had one occupant. Bando.<br>He lit a cigarette and gunned the throttle, making the motor roar and the boat leap ahead momentarily.  
>"Idiot. Doesn't even have a proper boat." He grumbled and took a pull.<br>He had declined all offers of weaponry, all except ammunition for his pistol and a large caliber sniper rifle. If he had learned something from his previous encounters with these monsters then it was that in order to survive, one had to stay as far away as possible. He would pick off this guy from a mile away, no trouble. He wasn't a trained sniper, but what he lacked in experience he more than made up in will, at least in his opinion. And if the worst came to the worst, his revolver, which had proved so useful before, would finish the job the rifle had failed to do. This was supposed to be easy. Only one target, alone, from afar. One shot and done, easy money. And after this he would go as far away from that damned facility as was possible.  
>The coast came into sight. He made sure to stay clear of the city port, instead heading slightly to the left, where the terrain grew into sharp cliffs with stretch of sand separating the rock face from the ocean. One shot, from a distance. Should be easy.<br>"Yeah right, like hell it's gonna be easy."  
>The boat gently hit ground. Bando got out, snatched the sniper rifle from the interior and trudged through the sand. There was no way he could carry the huge rifle around in the city. He resolved to hide it here, buried in the sand. The first task was only reconnaissance anyway. He had the element of surprise on his side. He knew his target, and with luck, his target wasn't aware yet that he was being chased. When he was first shown the photo of the male, he had been skeptic. Another adolescent? But it didn't really matter what age he was; he was as good as dead for him. He stuck his hand sin his pockets and walked towards Kamakura. He already had a good idea where to start looking.<br>"Look out you abomination, 'cause here I fucking come."

* * *

><p>There were several humans about in the streets, not many, but still a few. For him it was the right number, enough that he would not be subject to much scrutiny and few enough to allow him to avoid touching any of them. Dwellings were numerous, but as far as he could see, none of them were empty. No place looked like it could adequately accommodate two-dozen artifices, himself, and his queen. He pulled that hat low over his face. There was no need for anyone to see his face. For all he knew, there were armed killers out there searching for him. In that regard, dong what he did was probably not the smartest thing moving about in the open, but it was necessary. Besides, as long as there were people around him and it was daylight, no rationally thinking person would attempt to draw a gun on him. And so he wandered for hours, taking in the buildings, the wide avenues and the people. All would become vital soon enough.<br>He presently left the city. He needed a break from being around the human vermin. The cliff he stood on overlooked both the town and the bay, an excellent vantage point. Even better, there was a telescope mounted on a pedestal with which one could observe the view. He put his eye to the lens and swiveled the whole thing around to face the sea. There, out in the distance, too far for the naked eye to see, but magnified now was the island. His blood boiled as he once again heard the screams in his head. Soon, very soon. There were just a few things that needed to be done beforehand.  
>He gazed with longing at the complex, and was so immersed in the sight that he did not notice a young couple approaching the spot. They were as surprised as him, probably because they hoped to find some privacy here. For a moment they stared at each other, the three of them, then Ageno turned his head away. The young man whispered something to his companion and they turned to leave. A gust of wind suddenly blew from the sea. Unprepared for his, he was not able to hold on to his hat as it flew away. The couple had noticed, and now stared at him in awe and wonder, or rather at the horns that were now clearly visible through his short white hair.<br>"What is going on?" the woman asked alarmed.  
>His vectors shot out and grabbed her, tossing her high into the air.<br>"Mei! No!"  
>The man stretched out his fingers, as if he wanted to reach up and grab her, but his fingers were sliced off two of Ageno's vectors wrapped themselves around him like anacondas. The man's eyes widened, before the vectors tightened. He seemed to burst like a ripe fruit, and what was left of him scattered over the ground in a bloody mess. The woman meanwhile was hanging in mid-air, suspended by one of his vectors.<br>"Help m-"  
>Her torso was sliced off, and Ageno let both halves of her fall back down to the earth.<br>It felt good having killed again. He had to stand these primates all day and he was now finally able to do with them what he pleased. There was no option to make them carriers, not after what they had seen, so he did well deciding that he should enjoy himself with them. But if he wanted to keep his cover, then he had to disappear now. If anyone else cam and found him amongst the human remains...  
>He left the mess of limbs and organs behind him and walked back to the house.<p>

Yuka and Kohta were already back when he came home, something he would have rather avoided given the choice. The was not supposed to leave the house, but he thought that no one would dare tell him off after he had demonstrated his power with Nana.  
>"You could have been discovered!" an agitated Yuka reminded him.<br>So someone did dare after all.  
>He remained silent.<br>Nana was by his side once more, a vector connecting the two of them. Once again, he would speak through her.  
>"It's dangerous out there! They could be searching for you!"<br>Dangerous? HE was dangerous. He had just killed two humans because they had seen him. And besides, who would be searching for him? He had killed the whole team during his escape. They were not going to gamble losing more men, were they? Humans were brutal and scrupulous creatures, but even they knew when and where to draw the line.  
>"And why are there blood stains on <em>my<em> shirt?" Kohta demanded.  
>He smiled indulgently.<br>"He says he had a nosebleed." Nana answered.  
>"Like hell you did! You went out and killed somebody didn't you? You monster! How could you? Haven't enough people died already? How much blood do you need to spill before you're satisfied, huh?"<br>He lunged at Ageno, who was caught unawares, and the two tumbled to the floor. Kohta was punching him as hard as he could, and shouting all the while.  
>"DON'T KILL! I'LL KILL YOU FOR RUINING THE LIVES OF OTHERS!"<br>Ageno was still stunned, but regained himself quickly. Even though he was subjected to the pain of Kohta's punches, he focused enough to use his vectors to hurl Kohta from him. The human flew against the wall, breaking through it and impacting on the other side, sliding to the floor covered in debris.  
>"Kohta!" Yuka cried and rushed over to him.<br>Kohta was dazed, had several bruises and blood was trickling down from a cut on the back of his head. Nana made a movement towards the two, but Ageno stopped her, instead, making her speak.  
>"He says that your struggle for dominance over him is futile, he is by far the more powerful male."<br>Yuka looked up, her face tear-streamed.  
>"You idiot! This isn't about dominance!"<br>"He says that you do not understand." Nana replied. "How could you? Besides, it was he who attacked first."  
>"But you didn't have to throw him through the wall! Ageno, you have to stop this! You can't go around just killing people! Please, I'm begging you!"<br>Ageno's face remained stone cold.  
>"He says that all your pleas are wasted. He says that he has not even started killing yet. Until now, he was just testing if his strength had returned to him, nothing more. He says that the real killing will start soon."<br>"Nana!" Yuka pleaded "Why do you do this to yourself? Weren't you happy before?"  
>This time Ageno let Nana speak for herself. He wanted to know the answer just as much.<br>"I…I was doing what papa told me to. I was having a normal life, even a family. But now the prince is here, he will take care of me now, he is my new papa, and when we free my sisters together, we can all be a big family, just like we are supposed to be."  
>This answer satisfied him immensely. Maybe Nana was not as corrupted as he had thought.<br>"But what he did to you…he hurt you!"  
>Nana shook her head.<br>"That was my fault."  
>"Your fault?" Yuka was shocked.<br>"Yes. I was not behaving well. I deserved the punishment. But he has forgiven me now, and I will serve him in every way possible."  
>Yuka looked defeated, still tending to Kohta.<br>"Ageno…I know that this is important to you. I know that you could have killed all of us by now if you had wanted to. I ask just one thing."  
>Was that so? He was curious.<br>"I…I want to ask you to leave us alone."  
>His eyes narrowed, displeased.<br>"You can have Nana, and even Nyu, they should be with someone like themselves, but please leave Kohta and me alone, okay? Please!"  
>He mulled it over. He could just kill them all and be done with it, but that was a poor way to thank them for taking care of his regina and an artifex while he was gone. He had something to be grateful for. He smiled and nodded. There was no need for Nana to speak for him.<br>Yuka teared up and sobbed into Kohta's shoulder, who was slowly regaining his consciousness now. Nana was frightened. She had felt a powerful emotion from Ageno through their bond, and a though that she did not like at all. She was horrified at what had crossed form his mind into hers.  
>"No…" she said. "Please no…"<br>He told her not to worry about it; it would only be a matter of minutes. It would be painful, but necessary. And tomorrow they were going to do what he had planned all this time. He told her to pass this on to the humans once they were done crying. But for the moment she was to come with him.  
>Ageno lead the way upstairs. Nana was timid. Was she prepared to do this, even if it was for her prince, and her whole race? It was too late for doubts, and she wanted to make her prince proud of her. She had failed him before, not acting as she was supposed to, but now everything would be good, she knew that.<br>_Which one is the regina's room?_ He asked her.  
>She led him to a door, and slid it open for him. Nyu was curled up in a corner, as if she knew. Or maybe it was just because all the shouting downstairs had scared her. She looked up when he entered, and saw his tall silhouette in the doorway.<br>"Ny-nyu?" He walked towards her, nana behind him and came to a stop, several feet from her. She slowly looked up into his eyes, and he saw fear reflected in her purple pupils. His vectors shot out, grabbing hold of her, hoisting her up into the air. She struggled, and started to cry, but he did not let go. Then more of his vectors grabbed hold of her clothes, and ripped them to shreds. Her body was beautiful; she was truly a queen, no, a goddess, the most beautiful ever. She was divine, and together they would create a new race in their image and rule over it as princeps and regina. His vectors lowered her, and pinned her to the floor.  
><em>Nana<em>  
>The command was silent, but she understood, and began undressing him too. He dared not take his eyes off of his queen. Nyu was struggling harder than ever, for she seemed to know what was to come. If she had been in her normal state, he would not have to fulfill this act so violently, but he had no choice. He would enjoy it all the same. It seemed that Nyu had spent all her strength, for she now lay still, but crying on the floor. All the better. And tomorrow, the world would change, forever.<p> 


	6. ERLOESUNG: Salvation

The next morning the sun rose slowly, and colored the sky red. It was almost foreshadowing. Ageno rose. Beside him lay Nyu. They had fallen asleep together the previous night. He thought it fitting that they would spend these few hours together, as a prelude to how their life was going to be in future. Nana was slumped in a corner, also sleeping. She had merely stood and watched the entire time. He walked past the clothes discarded the night before and over to a closet, searching for something. After a few moments he found what he was looking for, a long length of white cloth, probably a bed cover. He would not go free them dressed as a human, the shame! He tried to wrap the long cloth around him, but was failing. Instead he woke Nana. It was her duty to assist him in any way possible, and in future this was going to be one of her tasks. In the end, they managed to drape the cloth in such a way to make him look presentable. He then told her to go back to sleep.  
>"But aren't you taking me with you?"<br>_No, it's too dangerous. I need you here, protecting the regina. And pass on that message to the three humans while you're at it. _  
>"I won't disappoint you!"<br>_I know, because otherwise I'll kill you._  
>Minutes later he exited the house, walking towards the beach. His blood was boiling again, because this was the day he had been waiting for, for months.<p>

* * *

><p>Bando stood facing the ocean. He put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it. So far no trace of this thing, even though he had scoured the city for the whole day and night. No one fitted the description. Curiously, in the early hours of the morning it drew him here. This was the place he had been first confronted with one of these so-called Diclonius, the one who had taken his arm and both his eyes. He was not someone who thought much about nature, but the sun today was something he had never seen before. It colored the sky behind him red, the color of blood. He took it as an omen. He was going to kill this Diclonius today, he was certain. He took a deep pull, and exhaled the smoke. And when that was done, he had his revenge, and a boatload of cash with it.<br>He saw movement out of the corner of his artificial eyes. A lone figure, walking down the steps from the street, towards the ocean. The figure was oddly dressed in what seemed to be white robes. Then he noticed the white hair and horns.  
>He dropped his cigarette to ground and stamped it out under the heel of his boot.<br>"Well I'll be damned…this is just too good! I'll end this here and now!"  
>He sprinted off towards the Diclonius. There was no doubt; this was the one he had been searching for. Finally fate smiled upon him.<br>He drew his pistol as he ran, regretting not having the sniper rifle at hand, but the pistol would do. He didn't waste any time, but fired, again and again, sending a hail of bullets towards his target. The high caliber and high muzzle velocity was something that no vector could counter from this short range, he had proved that before.  
>The Diclonius stopped and turned towards him. Bando thought that any moment he was going to fall over dead, but he seemed unharmed. Bando fired again, and kept firing until the gun was empty. But the bullets never reached their target, ricocheting off in all directions. He was stunned, and scared to death, realizing what this meant.<br>"Ah…eh…but…no fair…that's not possible."  
>He felt something grasp him around the waist, and he was lifted up into the air, and then tossed carelessly away to one side. He hit the sand hard, and a considerable amount of it ended up in his mouth. He looked up just in time to see the Diclonius running, speeding up towards the water. Suddenly he seemed to fly, a few feet above the waves, carried forward incredibly fast. Now and then were short splashes around him, indicating where his vectors briefly touched the water's surface. He was fast disappearing from sight. Bando leapt up and ran towards the edge of the water, shouting.<br>"Come back you fucking bastard! I'm not done with you yet! Get back here so I can kill you!"  
>After a while it dawned on him what was happening. The Diclonius was heading for the facility. Why, he did not know, but he was suddenly very glad that he was here, and not there. His target had made a huge error in not killing him, and error that he was going to regret. Now he had enough time to prepare for his return.<p>

* * *

><p>Ageno's heart was throbbing with excitement. This was the day that would see the rise of his species. Nothing would get in his way, not even the human on the beach who had shot at him. Killing him would have taken too much time, and there was not a second to spare. His drape was slightly damp from the droplets of water hitting him, but that was no real concern. He wondered if all the imprisoned were in a state fit to travel. If they were not, then he had to find and alternative, he would not leave anyone behind. But he would kill all humans inside, and he would find and execute the one who was responsible for all of this, there would be no mercy, and he didn't think that the artifices would need much encouragement. The island came into sight, and he redoubled his efforts. He would hit them so hard and fast that they did not know what had happened. He saw the cliff starting to loom over him, but that was to be no obstacle. His vectors propelled him up into the air. He would have smashed against the rock face, had his vectors not stopped him. The aided him in climbing up the overhanging slope. He rose over the edge and onto level ground smoothly, as if he were flying. And there he hovered. There was no siren yet, no gun-wielding guards storming at him, but that was soon to change. His vectors carried him forward to a steel door in the building. He was set down on the ground, and started pounding away at the thick steel. The door may have been designed to prevent a Diclonius from braking out, but it could not hold under sheer torrent of blows of an enraged Diclonius princeps.<br>Soon, large dents began to appear, and still Ageno hammered away. Finally the door buckled. Ageno pried the door from its hinges and threw it to the ground. It was then that the alarm sounded.

* * *

><p>Director Kakuzawa was in his office once again, shuffling papers. The phone on his desk rang. Curiously he picked it up.<br>"Yes?"  
>On the other end of the line, noise could be heard, gunshots, screams, then a frantic voice talked rapidly.<br>"_Sir! The subject who escaped a few days ago is back! He has broken into the facility and is overpowering us! We need he-AHHH!"_  
>The line went dead. The director held the receiver in his hand for several more seconds, then replaced it on its fork.<br>"So."

* * *

><p>Yuka awoke from an uneasy sleep. It had tormented her last night to hear Nyu scream while Ageno had his way with her. Now she was ashamed of what she had done, the deal she had made, even though at that time she knew it was the right thing. She decided that she would go see if Nyu was all right. Creeping along the hall, she was careful not to wake Kohta. He should recover from when Ageno threw him against the wall. She stood in front of the door to Nyu's room and sighed before knocking.<br>"Nyu? Nyu, are you awake?"  
>There was no answer, so she slid the door open and entered. The room was still dark, but her eyes adjusted. She only saw Nyu, stretched out on the floor. She bore n marks of what Yuka thought had happened to her. Perhaps Ageno had been gentle since he did say she ways his queen. Nana was there two, but she was awake and sitting, watching over the sleeping Nyu. Ageno was missing. When Yuka entered, Nana looked up.<br>"Uhm…where did Ageno go?"  
>Nana didn't answer; she just looked back at her. She realized what this must mean.<br>"Oh no…but…but…it's too soon!"  
>"He said to remind you of what he said, that you should go away as far as possible, and live a happy life as long as you still can."<br>There were several moments of silence as the full impact of Ageno's message sunk in. Then Yuka turned and ran down the hall shouting.  
>"Mayu! Kohta! Wake up! Wake up! We've got to get out of here!"<br>Kohta poked his head out of his room, and rubbed his eyes sleepily.  
>"W-what's going on?" he asked and yawned widely.<br>"Ageno started a war!"  
>"A war against whom?"<br>"A war against humanity!"

* * *

><p>Ageno's feet were in a pool of blood; around him on the ground lay the maimed corpses of at least a dozen guards. Facing him, cowering against the wall of the corridor, whose walls were now spattered with red, sat a guard. A phone was on the wall, about at head height. The cord hung down loosely, while the speaker was on the floor. The guard cradled the stump where his right hand had once been. He was breathing heavily. The look in his eyes was of complete fear, the kin of fear a man experiences when he know he is about to die. Ageno approached him. The guard scrabbled at the floor with his feet, but there was nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.<br>The Princeps knelt down in front of him, and stared directly in his eyes. He stretched out his hand, and put it on the man's head, grasping his black hair. As he realized what was about to happen, he tried to scream, but as his head parted company with his torso, his yell was cut off and ended in a wet gurgle. Ageno rose again, and continued on his way, still clutching the man's head in his hand. As he walked there was the gently dripping noise of blood still trickling from the head's veins. He left a trail of red dots on the ground behind him. He had planned this for so long. The only reason he let himself be captured was that he could break out again, and memorize the facility's schematics in the process. He came to a set of lift doors.  
>They had learned from their last mistake. The power was on auxiliary, only the vents and lights still worked. He threw open the doors to the shaft, and jumped. He fell, further and further. The ground was fast approaching. His vectors slammed into the concrete floor and left craters where they had impacted, but he was unharmed. He was back on the vault level, where his sisters in kin had been imprisoned and where the key to release them was. He thought for a moment, then struck the doors into the hall with one mighty blow, catapulting the out of the anchoring, down the corridor and into the formation of guards that had lined up there to intercept him. Some managed to dodge, but five were too late, and wee squashed under the weight.<br>"Open fire!"  
>The guns boomed, echoing in the enclosed space. Ageno approached them unperturbed, not even caring about the bullets that whizzed around his ears. Four of his vectors formed an impenetrable shield, catching the bullets in midair. The line began to buckle, but Ageno was already far in range. The ones to flee first were immediately killed. The one who stood followed. He ended up with four of the guards tight in his vectors, up in the air unable to move, only able to scream. Ageno wished they wouldn't. He was trying to decide what to do with them and all the noise made it much more difficult to concentrate. In the end he settled for tearing them apart from by their legs.<br>_Make a wish_ He thought _We shall be free_  
>The control room was deserted when he entered. He was still clutching the severed head in his left. It was rather useless now so he dropped it on the floor with a squelching sound. During his brief visit to the facility's databanks he had memorized the vaults, their occupants, their characteristics and even the names that they were given.<br>Of the thirty-six vaults that had been in use, only eleven were still occupied. Number three had been the Regina's prison, number seven had been Nana's and thirty-six was his. The remaining twenty-two had been home to Diclonius that had been killed or died as a result of the cruel experiments that had been performed on them. There were a smaller number of survivors than he had hoped, but it was enough for his purposes. He hacked into the system once more with one of his vectors and began to open all the vault doors. He listed the released in his head.

Number 2: Luka  
>Number 4: Sera<br>Number 6: Nika  
>Number 11: Iola<br>Number 12: Vena  
>Number 13: Lena<br>Number 17: Nova  
>Number 18: Rena<br>Number 24: Lavina  
>Number 29: Adela<br>Number 31: Idetta

He retracted his vector and left the operations center. His sisters were awakening, their bloodlust curdled, and eager to avenge themselves upon their human tormenters. He would provide them with the slaughter they wished. They were not to be kept in hiding anymore, not in captivity. They would take their rightful place as masters of the earth. He stood in the hallway that connected all the vaults and waited. They came, one by one. Some were wrapped in bandages. All of them were covered in blood. Either from older wounds they had sustained during the experiments, or blood from the security the slaughtered in their escape. Against his better judgment, Ageno suddenly felt nervous. He had every right to be. They would either accept him as their princeps or pay homage, or they would not accept him and tear him to shreds. He held his breath and waited until all of them had arrived, forming a half circle around him. There was complete and eerie silence. Then, as one, they went on their knees, and bowed. Ageno breathed again. His vectors extended to all of them and went into their heads, linking them as one mind.  
><em>Today we shall rise<em>  
>He turned and walked in the direction of the exit. His loyal subjects followed him, docile as dogs.<p>

* * *

><p>A guard in a blood spattered uniform threw open the door to the director's office.<br>"Sir, we have to flee! Number thirty-six has freed the other Diclonius! We can't hold them in the facility; we have to initiate the emergency plan!"  
>"It has been done, the military was notified. They will take care of the situation."<br>"Good! Sir, we must get out of here!"  
>"Yes. Get the helicopter ready. Luckily we managed to get a new one so soon."<br>"Yes sir, right away."  
>The guard was about to leave when he suddenly noticed something over the director's shoulder. He gaped and pointed with a quivering arm. Kakuzawa turned just in time to see the helicopter fly in a large arc towards him. It impacted on the window and broke through the class. Both Kakuzawa and the guard were crushed under several tons of steel and glass shards.<p>

* * *

><p>Ageno smiled as he saw the damage that Lena had done when she threw the helicopter into the glass front of the director's office. The scientists had determined her many vectors to be very strong. He wanted to see whether it had been true. Apparently they were right, and he was pleased.<br>_Well done artifex_  
>She giggled with delight at her handiwork and bowed her head to him in an over exaggerating way.<br>"Thank you my princeps."  
>A fire had started in the office, and it was quickly spreading. Ageno lead the Diclonius to the edge of the island, where the land suddenly dropped down into the ocean. Luka stepped out of the ranks. She was the oldest Diclonius of the lot. She was twenty but looked like she was eight years older than that. Her hair was as red as her eyes, and fell down to her knees, as if it had rarely been cut. It was a marvel of her strength and willpower that she had managed to sustain herself for this long.<br>"My princeps, how shall we reach the mainland?"  
>It was a valid question. He had not shared the information of how he had reached the island with them.<br>_We shall walk across the water _he said and leapt off the side of the cliff. He landed in the water, before his vectors lifted him up and propelled him forward over the surface of the ocean. Looking back he saw the other Diclonius following his example, and soon they were racing towards the shore. Judgment day had come.


	7. VERDAMNIS: Damnation

"Quickly now! We can't waste any time!" Kohta called upstairs.  
>Yuka was kneeling on the floor, most of her clothes spread out before here and an opened suitcase close by.<br>"But I can't decide what to take with me!" she answered.  
>Kohta grimaced.<br>"Just take something or leave it, we have to go, I'm not bent on getting killed at the hands of that psycho, it was painful enough when he threw me against the wall!"  
>"All right, fine!" Yuka said and just bunched up all of the items and stuffed them into the case, slamming the lid shut on top of them.<br>"Mayu, are you ready to leave?" Kohta called.  
>She came down the stairs, holding her pet dog Wanta by the line, wearing he school uniform.<br>"Yes." She said quietly.  
>It was easy to pack quickly when you didn't own much in the first place.<br>Meanwhile, Nana and Nyu stood to one side, watching as the three gathered together before the entrance. Nana had followed the idea of clothing that Ageno had, and fashioned robe-like clothing for both herself and Nyu from white linen. Nyu however was not coping with her clothing very well, seeing as it constantly slipped. She resolved it by grasping the folds of the cloth tightly. Yuka clutched her suitcase in both hands.  
>"Okay…we're all ready to go. Ageno said that we should take the train and head south."<br>"Why do we have to listen to what HE said?" Kohta said distastefully.  
>"Because…" Yuka didn't want to tell him about the deal she had made and what happened as a result of that. Kohta had been unconscious at the time. "Because he showed mercy and wants to spare us from death as a thank you for taking care of him and Nyu."<br>Kohta mumbled incoherently under his breath. Yuka stepped forward and hugged Nana.  
>"I'm sorry we have to leave…but I don't understand why we can't live together in peace."<br>"Thank you for…for everything you did for me…" Nana began to cry "…for taking care of me and giving me the chance to have a normal life…just like papa wanted me to have…"  
>Yuka moved on to Nyu and hugged her as well.<br>"Bye Nyu…you're now where you belong, with your race. I'll miss you." She let go.  
>Now it was Kohta's turn.<br>He shook hands with Nana  
>"Have a good life, Nana."<br>"Stay safe." She told him  
>Then he went to Nyu.<br>He stood there for a while, unable to move, his face twitching slightly. He took one last look at her, then turned and walked out the door as fast as he could.  
>"Kohta!"<br>The other two hurried after him and Mayu was just able to say 'bye' before they disappeared. Nyu however first looked confused. Then she began to realize that this was the last time she would ever see them.  
>"Kohta!" she called out. "Kohta! No!"<br>She made to run after them, but Nana grabbed her by the arm and held her back.  
>"No! You can't leave! You need to stay with the princeps!"<br>"Kohta!" Nyu cried.  
>Suddenly Nana's arm came loose. Nana fell backward while Nyu stumbled forward and landed flat on the floor. She stretched out a hand to the open door in a begging gesture.<br>"Kohta!"  
>Kohta was running up the long stairway away from the house, his pace pinched and tears streaming down his cheeks. He was followed closely by Yuka and Mayu, who had just enough time to note that a large number of military trucks had just rolled by in the street below.<br>_I wonder what that was all about? _Yuka thought as they chased Kohta to the station.

* * *

><p>Ageno was at the tip of the spearhead formation that was he and his Diclonius. He could feel the blood rushing to his head, a sensation that made him giddy with expectation. It was the feeling that he got before he was about to kill, and this time there was plenty of killing to do. Through their telepathic link he could feel the same sense of expectation, the same bloodlust rising in his followers. Some more than others as he noted. Lena, number thirteen, could barely contain herself with the joy she was feeling. And she was actually humming, though what he did not know. He was sure that she would kill the most humans that day. Luka on the other hand, the senior of all the artifices, was very reserved. He assumed that this was because she had been in the facility much longer than anyone else, that she had been broken in her spirit to kill, that she had become compliant and forgot to hate the vermin. He would reserve his final judgment on her until after they entered battle. If she was too hesitant then she would be shot immediately. If she was going to be a liability to the rest, then he would kill her himself. He hoped that he would not have to resort to that; they were few as it was.<br>_Few, but superior_ he thought. Though their numbers were very limited, they would not doubt be vastly superior to the humans, no matter what resistance they managed to put against them. Ageno looked forward to the slaughter. There were only civilians in that city, defenseless. The experience was going to be most satisfying.  
>That was when the siren started to blare. An alarm that was normally used to warn the inhabitants of Kamakura against and impeding tsunami. But there was no giant wave anywhere. Ageno realized, that they were the threat against which Kamakura was being warned, and almost fell into the water below him out of surprise. He was very displeased.<br>_How did they know? This isn't possible!_  
>If they were aware that the Diclonius were coming, then they would have some kind of measure in place to defend themselves, most likely the army. Ageno cursed himself for not seeing this coming. The one flaw in his plan he had not calculated into his scheme. He was not ready to go up against armed soldiers. The security guards were one thing, but the soldiers would bring machine guns, and no doubt tanks with them. He looked right and left at the artifices. Since they wore little or no clothing he saw that they were skinny, and appeared starved out. No wonder, they had been fed through tubes most of the last year. He recalled hoe recovery had been for him. He was not sure at all that they would be able to hold their own against the military. But there was no turning back now. Ageno plowed on through the water. They still had a slight chance of surprise on their side. The military would concentrate on evacuating civilians first. So by the time that Ageno arrived, they would be caught unawares, surprised, and hopefully, annihilated.<p>

* * *

><p>Bando watched from the safety of a shadowy alleyway as the evacuation commenced. People were called out of their houses, carrying bundles of their most valuable possessions. All of them, he noticed, looked confused, some were still in their pajamas, having no doubt been roused out of their sleep. He retracted his head as a group of soldiers ran by. He had recovered his sniper rifle from the place he had buried it in the sand immediately after having confronted the Diclonius n the beach. He looked p and examined the buildings. One of the high-rise apartments or office buildings would serve as a nice vantage point, but he had to be careful so that he was not caught.<br>So he waited. When the civilians were gone, he would ascend the stairs in one of the taller houses, lie flat on the level roof and set his sights. With a bit of luck, he might be able to kill them all before they even knew what was going on.

* * *

><p>They had arrived. Ageno's vectors touched sand, and he came to a full stop, allowing his Diclonius inferiors to gather around him. He lowered himself onto the ground, and the others imitated him. It was as he had expected. Even though the military was present in Kamakura, the defense line hadn't been even partially established. The infantry was busy evacuating the populace, the vehicles were not getting anywhere, and the tanks were to slow to have arrived in position yet. He smiled. It was not as bad as he had thought after all. Through his telepathic link he could feel them teeming, their hearts beating as one. They were poised, ready to wreak havoc on the city and exterminate the filthy humans. Ageno tasted this moment, letting it last. Then he gave his command.<br>_Kill them. All of them._  
>The artifices walked forward, silently. Together they ascended the steps onto the street. It was far from empty, there were vehicles there, trucks and jeeps. And humans. So many humans. Some were military, but most of them were normal everyday people, clutching what little they could carry. At first the Diclonius went unnoticed, but soon enough the crowd began to become aware of their presence and began to point at them. They were and eerie sight. The naked female bodies, the long, oddly colored hair in various shades of pink, red and purple, the eyes, cold and evil, and the horns, clearly visible, sticking out of their heads.<br>They continued on, undeterred. There was not a single shot fired yet. It seemed like the military had not been very well informed on the threat they were facing. And they would ruthlessly exploit this weakness. They stopped walking, and formed a line, facing the crowd. There was no movement on either side for a moment, then a soldier stepped forward.  
>"Hey you! What were you doing? Swimming in the ocean?" he turned to his comrades.<br>"Give these some blankets and load them onto the trucks as well, we have to evacuate ASAP."  
>The soldier reached out to grab the Diclonius nearest him, which to his misfortune happened to be Lena.<br>"Come on, move!"  
>For a moment she stared down at the hand that was holding her arm, attempting to pull her out of the rank. She looked up into the man's eyes and smiled. That was when he knew that he had done something very wrong. In the next second it seemed as if he evaporated, as a red mist exploded into the air, staining the black tar with droplets of blood and dousing the Diclonius as well. The man had been simultaneously ripped apart by dozens of vectors.<br>For a moment there was nothing, and then complete pandemonium ensued. People began running away from the pale figures. Half the soldiers tried to maintain order, failing miserable and some ending up under the feet of the fleeing. People were pushed, shoved, tripped to the ground and trod on by the ones following behind. The remaining troops opened fire on the only source of danger, the Diclonius. Only, they were not standing sill any longer. They were attacking. Not in good formation, but in chaos, a wild horde, driven by bloodlust, with Lena in the lead, far ahead of her kin. She propelled herself into the mass of bodies, and began her bloody work, laughing with joy all the same. Next came Vena. Her priorities were different, dealing with the armed personnel first. Her five vectors were in constant motion, stabbing down and into the bodies of the soldiers, quick and lethal, her hair a bluish red, whipping about her as she turned and twisted to give her vectors the optimum range. It was hardly a fair battle, and the Diclonius left nothing behind except mangled corpses and limbs, leaning blood onto the street, running through the cracks in the surface and down into the drainage pipes. Ageno had watched, and now he slowly walked forward. His feet were soon slapping on the wet surface in a sickly manner. His feet were soon crimson, and the blood began to dry. His toga-like clothing was also covered in fine red dots from the spray that they had created when they ripped the soldier apart. He followed his Diclonius, who were chasing after the fleeing, leaving none of them alive. They knew no mercy, no compassion. Not a single life was spared. Ageno saw people of all ages, men, women and children, strewn all over the place, their blank eyes staring in an expression of shock and fear. He knew that they had temporarily gained the upper hand. But the city was large, and word would travel fast. Soon they would be surrounded, facing tanks as well most likely. He watched as Lena picked up one of the trucks that had started to drive, and was full of humans, and threw it into the air, over the heads of the running crowd. The truck landed and rolled over several times, crushing people under its weight as if they were ants and sealing off the escape. Then it started to burn. He listened to the sounds, the screams the less, and Lena's very prominent laughter. He felt that the Regina was somewhere near, and that Nana was with her. No doubt they were watching the slaughter from afar.  
><em>Enjoy the view, my queen, for this is for you, and for our race.<em>

* * *

><p>Bando saw the carnage from the roof of a building in the center of Kamakura. It gave him a good overview of the whole city, and on what was happening to the people below. Bando was a cold killer; he would not hesitate once to put a gun to someone's head of he was paid to do so. He was used to killing, to murder, to seeing bodies, but this…this was entirely different. He saw soldiers, professionals of the trade getting cut apart as if they were toys. He didn't feel any particular sympathy for them while they were being slaughtered, but it angered him that it seemed like nothing could be done against the marauding Diclonius. They had split up it seemed, because fires were burning all around him in the streets. Even entire buildings stood in flames. It seemed to him as if there were about a dozen hostiles. A dozen. Versus several hundred of what was supposed to be Japan's finest. He couldn't kill them all, that was an impossible task, but he would at least kill their leader. If he managed to take down several others in the process, that was just an added bonus. He didn't expect to survive this. He took the sniper rifle from his shoulder, hefting it to his shoulder and staring down at the streets, ignoring all the bodies, searching for his target. Eventually he had to show himself, it was just a matter of time. The three of them were almost at the station when they heard the explosions. Each of them turned their head in wonder. They saw plumes of smoke rising from the dense cluster of buildings that was the city center. And through the air, even though they were rather far away, the screams of the panicking citizens could be heard.<p>

* * *

><p>Yuka clasped her hands over Mayu's ears. Mayu looked away from the sight; she couldn't bear it any longer.<br>"Those…those people will be okay…right? Right?"  
>Yuka averted her eyes. Instead, her gaze fell on Kohta, who stared at the scene as if transfixed.<br>"Kohta? Are you all right?"  
>"I need to go back."<br>Yuka looked surprised and slightly confused.  
>"What?"<br>Kohta started to shake.  
>Yuka realized what could happen and dashed over to him.<br>"I cat leave Nyu behind!" Kohta shouted, trying to rid himself of the clasping grip Yuka had on his arm.  
>Yuka meanwhile was struggling, digging in the heels of her shoes into the ground to stop Kohta from running off into what would certainly be his death.<br>"No Kohta! You can't go back! You'll get yourself killed!"  
>"I can't leave her! Let me go! I need to go to her!"<br>A hand impacted on the side of his face and he reeled, thrown off balance, stumbled and landed on the ground. Yuka was standing over him, her hand drawn back, ready to slap him again.  
>"Kohta you idiot! Nyu is gone! She won't come with us! She doesn't belong with us! She is supposed to be with Ageno and the rest of her kind, and you should leave her!"<br>Kohta looked at her, dumbfounded.  
>"Get up! We're leaving!" she said and stormed away "Come one Mayu."<br>Then she stopped and turned around, giving Kohta a long scrutinizing stare.  
>"Ageno gave us a choice. We can run and live, or stay and die. I chose to live, for as long as I still can."<p>

* * *

><p>Lena had the time of her live. Finally free from that stinking cell and out in the open. She could finally kill as many of these puny humans as she wanted. They were the ones who had made her life hell, who had imprisoned her. She had been called a freak, but what did that matter now? Now that they were out in the open and free to roam!<br>_We're not freaks_ she thought as she cut a swathe through a mass of humans armed with some of their puny weapons _we're just better_  
>She laughed as she decapitated three humans with one swipe, pausing a moment to appreciate the fountains of blood erupting from their necks. She was a strong Diclonius and she knew it. Not a single bullet had so much as grazed her, even though they filled the air. She cut the last man standing into ribbons and surveyed her work. It was an art really, she thought as she regarded the mass of bodies oozing blood all over the place. She heard a sound, a loud mechanical rumbling from down the street. She turned towards the noise and saw more armed humans coming from there.<br>_More to kill_ she thought.  
>But the noise was generated by a large vehicle that moved slowly in her direction. Then, at the other end of the street, it came to a full halt. Lena knew there was something weird about that thing. Even the humans kept their distance from it. Then there was a huge explosion. Something raced towards her through the air, so fast she didn't even see it. She just had time to dodge out of the way, and the thing that missed her hit a building to her left, shattering the glass front into a million pieces in a giant ball of flame.<br>"Nice toy" she hissed "But your thunder machine won't stop me!"  
>She slowly walked towards the thing. She saw the humans backing away further. They probably expected her to be dead by now. There was another loud boom. This time, Lena saw it coming. One of her vectors snatched the thing out of the air. It was a conically shaped metal…thing. Whatever it was, it was supposed to kill her, and made huge explosions when it hit something. That was good enough.<br>"Hey!" she called out to the humans "Have it back!"  
>She threw the thing as hard as she could towards the humans. It hit the ground in front of the machine. It exploded, momentarily blinding her. She had a ringing in her ears from the sound wave it made. When the dust settled, she saw that the machine was a wreck of twisted metal, and scattered all around it were humans, some charred to a cinder, but all of them dead.<br>"Aww…" she sighed "Was that all?"

* * *

><p>Ageno stood on top of what he perceived to be a gate, even though it wasn't a gate to anything really, just some giant wooden frame standing in the middle of the street an didn't seem to serve any purpose, apart from now being a vantage point to him. It was from here that a wide street from the bay up into the city. At the moment, the street was littered with burning cars and military trucks, and of course a lot of bodies.<br>_This must have been some kind of assembly area; they drove all the humans together here and load them into trucks, then use the wide street to evacuate them._  
>It would have been a good plan, had Ageno not stumbled on the street, and proceeded to murder anyone in sight. He had approached from the south, where the ocean was. The military had a defense ring established, and after Ageno had slaughtered those soldiers, it was an easy, if very tedious task to clear the square. Now the dead littered the avenue. Hundreds of them. The metallic bitter taste of blood wafted into Ageno's nostrils and he breathed it in deeply. It had been hard work. But now he called his Diclonius to gather together here. He wanted to see if they were all in good condition. Besides, this was where he had told Nana to bring the regina. Here her new subjects would welcome their queen. Then they came. Their bare bodies were all almost covered from head to toe in blood, proof of the many humans that had fallen victim to their rampage. He was pleased that they had followed their instincts so readily. All of them. From his vantage point he watched them approach him from all sides. One thing he thought was odd though. Many of them seemed to drag themselves to him. It looked like they had lost the energy they had so readily displayed. Ageno wondered why this was. He leapt down from the gate as soon as they had all gathered. Luka was the first to speak.<br>"My princeps" she said, bowing her head slightly, her face shrouded by the long hair that had fallen forward. "All humans in this part of the city have been exterminated."  
><em>Good<em> Ageno said, still communication telepathically _then we must move on, there is still far to go._  
>He proceeded to lead the Diclonius up the avenue, but stopped when he noticed that they weren't following him.<br>_What is this?_ He demanded.  
>"My princeps…we are hungry, we must eat."<br>Of course. They had been fed through tubes for months, maybe even years. They had been unmoving, their muscles in decline. Now that they were doing more physical activity than they had done in their entire lives, their bodies couldn't take it anymore. After all, he needed two days to recover after only a few months of imprisonment.  
><em>Then eat <em>  
>Luka looked puzzled, an expression that was almost too human.<br>"But…there's no food around, my princeps."  
><em>There is an abundance of food at hand <em>  
>He felt confusion among his Diclonius at this statement. Among all except Lena. Previously she had been panting, but now the wicked smile returned to her face, and Ageno knew that she understood. Lena looked around, then went to the nearest corpse, kneeled down, and started to devour the human, using her vectors to slice him apart, and stuffing chunks of meat into her mouth with her bare hands. The other Diclonius watched her for a second, then imitated her, and in no time they were all eating. Ageno heard the wet slaps as the edible parts were separated from the rest, followed by satisfied chewing. He noticed then that he was also hungry; the fighting had worn him down as well. He kneeled down next to the corpse of a young woman. He remembered killing her clearly. He had ripped the heart clean out of her chest, for it now lay several meters from where she had fallen. Her round face still displayed an expression of surprise. There was a scent of fresh bread that stuck to her person. Probably she has been a baker; just making the day's pastries when she had been evacuated. Ageno then began to feast on her remains. 'Tender' was what went through his mind.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Many thanks to Princess Of Darkness22 who graciously let me borrow her Diclonius, Lena, for my own series. <strong>


	8. PROPHEZEIUNG: Prophecy

They had dined well, that much was clear. Ageno now felt considerably stronger than before, all traces of fatigue gone. From what he felt through his bond with the other Diclonius, they were very satisfied as well, having gorged themselves on the freshly deceased humans. They were still weak, that was no question. It would take time for them to get used to the strain of moving on foot again. But until that time, they could still utilize their vectors. Indeed, if they were able to deal with the army in this weakened state, then there would be no stopping them once they regained all of their physical strength. He saw that last of them swallow the lumps of meat they had in their mouths, wipe them on the back of their hands, and rise from their kneeling position, to congregate once more in front of the large wooden gate. Ageno inspected them. They looked presentable in his eyes. Yet he did wonder whether the regina was in any condition to take note of it. She was not herself, and hadn't been for some time. The loss of her horns was a flaw, one that could not be ignored forever. Not only did it mean that there was no telepathic link between them, which in itself was already unacceptable, but she was not able to control her vectors anymore.  
>She was a cripple.<br>And furthermore, if she refused to revert back to whom she really was, then she would be unfit to lead them, as she was supposed to, and that duty would fall to him, and he was not a born leader. He was a thinker. He thought that Yuka's comparison of his species to a beehive had been insulting, but accurate. The queen was the most important personality of all.  
>But if the regina did not return to a state I which she would be fit for duty, then he would take her post, as much as it pained him to do so. She would have to stay close by his side then, for he didn't want the future of the race to be jeopardized. They were few enough as it was.<br>Yet there must be more Diclonius, scattered all over the world, he himself was proof of that. They would hear them, and they would come to them, to join them, and claim the planet as their own. He felt that Nana was close, and the regina was too. His only concern now would be the reaction of the artifices. Would they accept a crippled queen?

* * *

><p>Bando was gazing through the scope of the sniper rifle, searching for any sign of activity.<br>To his left lay the Yuigahama district, now a ghost town, the streets littered with the dead, and buildings in flames.  
>To his right, across the river, the Zaimokuza district was almost empty as well. The inhabitants had fled north; either evacuated by the military or on foot through some of the many passes that connected old Kamakura to the rest of the city, or to escape via train. The Diclonius had to be somewhere off to his left, otherwise there would be fighting going on somewhere, and there was no such noise to be heard. His sight swept across the rooftops, and passed the Wakamiya Oji, the city's main street. He stopped and flickered back to it.<br>Along this avenue were three gates, leading up to the Shinto Shrine. There, at the Ichi no Torii, the first gate, figures were moving. Bando identified them as the Diclonius he was searching for. His target was clearly visible, seeing as he was the only one with short white hair.  
>"Bingo" he chuckled.<br>They all seemed to be waiting for something.  
>Bando set the rifle down on the ground, lying down behind it. He shifted into a comfortable position, made sure that the magazine was fully loaded, and adjusted his aim.<br>The rifle was a 50 caliber anti-tank weapon. He had been told that this was the only weapon that stood any chance of harming a Diclonius, since their vectors were strong enough to deflect anything else. The Diclonius was facing towards him, but with his eyes focused on the females, which stood in a straight line in front of him.  
>Bando centered the crosshairs on his forehead and steadied his breathing. He was not a sniper; he preferred guns with much shorter range and higher rate of fire. He knew how to do it in theory, it was just like using any other gun, but you needed to be steady and calm, something he didn't excel at. If he tried anything else though, he would get torn to pieces before he even got near them. He would not make the mistake of getting in the range of their invisible arms again. His heart rate slowed down. He put a finger on the trigger and slowly tightened his grip.<p>

* * *

><p>Nana lead Nyu along the broad avenue. The princeps had told her exactly where she had to go, where she had to bring the regina, and she wouldn't disappoint him. Nyu was whimpering slightly, still heartbroken about Kohta leaving so suddenly. On the other hand, she was frightened by the many bodies that lay around them. She had her arms clasped to her chest, as if she was trying to protect herself, and walked tentatively behind Nana, careful not t get too close to one of the dead.<br>The place she had been told to go came into sight, and Nana saw her princeps standing there, together with eleven other Diclonius. Her sisters! She had never met anyone other than Nyu belonging to her species. She wondered if they would be nice to her, or of they would think her a failure, for not being as strong as the rest of them. She was momentarily scared. The looked frightening, especially since they were covered in blood. She would not fit among them, since she was also wearing clothes, and they weren't. Nana considered stopping for a moment, but then realized that this was not an option. Besides, Yuka had given her something that she had to bring to her princeps, and it seemed important to her for some walked purposefully towards the waiting Diclonius. They made gap for her as she approached, allowing her to go forward to the princeps.  
>Meanwhile, Nyu looked around confused. There were so many new faces, and they all looked similar to her. Did she feel a little more comfortable being around her own kind?<br>Nana kneeled in front of the princeps.  
>"I did what you told me to"<br>_Well done Nana, you've proved yourself useful_  
>Nana felt her cheeks glow at that. It may not have sounded much like a compliment, but to her it was all she needed to feel accepted.<br>Ageno stretched out a hand to Nyu. It was a soft gesture, like an offer. Nyu hesitate for a moment, then took it, and walked forward to stand next to Ageno.  
><em>Finally we are united, and together we will claim this world as our own!<em>  
>Nana rose, and pulled something out of a pocket, offering it to Ageno.<br>_What is this?_  
>In her palm was a small wooden box.<br>She stuttered slightly.  
>"I-It was something Yuka gave me…for you. She said it was a parting gift."<p>

* * *

><p>Bando's eyes widened as he saw who had just joined the group. His blood boiled, and anger and hatred rose in him.<br>_It's that bitch!_ He thought _The one who took my eyes and my leg! I thought she was dead! _  
>Sweat formed on his brow as he remembered the events of that night. The rain, the sand. His partner's head getting sliced off. The fight. She, standing over him, was looking down with nothing but cold loathing in her eyes. Bando began to shake, but then gained control of himself again. It was clear what he had to do. Why would he bother with that male Diclonius, when he had a chance at revenge, the revenge he desired so much. And in the process he would kill as many of these abominations as possible, no matter what it cost him!<br>He switched his aim and centered on the head of the creature that had maimed him. He couldn't help but smile as he pulled the trigger.  
><em>Now you're mine!<em>

* * *

><p>Ageno felt it before he heard it. Something was travelling with incredible speed towards him, no, not him, towards the regina. A moment later he heard a distant 'crack'. It was definitely from a gun. He reacted instinctively. In a split second, he pushed both Nana and the regina aside. For a moment Ageno just stood there, a gaping hole in his chest, then he collapsed, and fell to the ground. There was music playing.<br>When Nana had been pushed back, the box flew out of her hands. It now lay open on the ground, and it was where the music, a quiet, sad tune, came from.  
>Nyu was sitting on the ground. Her face and hands were covered in blood. Not her own. It was Ageno's. She stared down at the red liquid on her palms, then raised them to her face, her head nodding forward, so that her dark pink hair fell forward to obscure her face even more.<br>_That music…_  
>And then she remembered. She remembered everything.<br>She took her hands away from her eyes. Her hair still obscured half of her face; ad hid it like a curtain.  
>Her innocent, naïve demeanor had gone. She edged forward to Ageno. He was still alive, his breathing shallow, one hand clasped to the wound in his chest. She put one of her hands on his, and the other behind his neck, and raised his torso, cradling him in her arms. Then she raised her head, and looked into the distance, fixing something with her gaze only she saw.<p>

* * *

><p>Bando sprang to his feet as if he had been hit by an electric shock, and stared at the distant figure, unable to move. He had missed! Not only that, but she had seen him! He needed to get out of there fast!<p>

* * *

><p>Kaede looked around at the Diclonius, all standing around, looking at their mortally wounded princeps. It was clear from their faces that they felt great pain as well. Their telepathic link suddenly severed, they felt a great sense of loss. Inside, Kaede boiled with fury. She would have gone after the shooter herself, but having lost her horns, she wouldn't stand a chance.<br>Her voice was a low murmur, but for all the weight it carried she might have shouted it out.  
>"Get him. Get him, and bring him here. Now."<br>They didn't hesitate a moment. They felt the same need for vengeance against the human who had shot their princeps.  
>Only Nana stayed behind, kneeling down next to her.<br>Kaede didn't care. What did it matter if she went with the rest, she would be useless anyway, so she might as well remain with them. Kaede turned her attention back to Ageno. The wound was fatal, that much was clear. He didn't have long to live. She didn't speak, it wasn't necessary. Her hand was still on his chest, so he raised his other hand and laid it on hers, and looked into the one eye that was not obscured by her hair.  
><em>For you, my queen<em>  
>She didn't reply.<br>_I am sorry for what I had to do, but it was necessary_  
>Still she didn't answer.<br>_Now it is your duty to lead our species to dominance and eradicate these humans_  
>"I know" she said "And thanks to you, we will succeed."<br>Ageno turned his head to the heavens, and gripped her hand even more tightly.  
><em>For our species<em>  
>He closed his eyes and exhaled one last time. His fingers, which had been clutching her had so firmly just a second before, relaxed.<br>Kaede's face twitched with fury as she threw her head back and howled at the sky, mourning the loss of her princeps.

* * *

><p>Bando dashed down the stairwell, intent on getting as much distance between him and the Diclonius a possible. He would have to stick to narrow streets and alleyways. There they couldn't use their arms that well and couldn't dodge if he shot at them. He wondered how long it would take them to catch up with him. Not very long at all as it turned out.<br>As he reached the ground level he saw a figure standing in the doorway, the slim shape, pale complexion and eccentric hair color left no doubt.  
>"Shit!" he cursed, and backtracked to one of the fire exits.<br>He barreled through the door and entered into a road out back from the building, drawing his revolver as he did so.  
>He took off, running as fast as he could, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to see if he had any pursuers, but there were none. Strange.<br>He heard a whooshing sound overhead, and rolled out of the way. Something invisible had hit the road where he just stood so hard that it left a crater. A moment later another girl landed in the street, having just jumped down from the rook of the adjacent house. She was joined by the one who had previously blocked Bando's main escape path and together they advanced towards him.  
>He stood firm, and fired twice at them, expecting them to fall over, wounded at least. But the bullets ricocheted off and invisible barrier.<br>_How are they doing that? They shouldn't be able to deflect them!_  
>He turned tail and ran again.<br>_They're circling me, hunting me like a wild boar. I can't let that happen!_  
>The road was clear up ahead. If he could just make it! Alleyways had been the wrong way to go; he realized, they were able to corner him more easily, also having the advantage of being vertically mobile. He had almost reached the end of the street, when another figure blocked his way. Bando raised his gun and fired a full salvo at her. The Diclonius didn't even flinch as she stared at him with her pink eyes. He backed away, whirling around to see if there were more. The two that had been following him were still advancing at a casual pace. He was trapped. All around him more of them dropped down, until he was surrounded by no less than ten.<br>Bando was sweating profusely. He should be dead by now; this didn't bode well for him at all. Whatever was to come, it was going to be far worse than death.  
><em>All because I had to miss!<em>  
>One of the younger girls stepped forward. In contrast to her kin, she was smiling at him, but in a way that made him cringe.<br>"You…" she hissed.

* * *

><p>Kaede finally let go of the princeps, carefully lowering his torso back to the ground. She felt despair at his demise, even though they had hardly met before, even though she had no emotional attachment to him.<br>He was the one who had raped her, who had made her part from Kohta. But all of that seemed insignificant, for she knew that he didn't do it because he wished her ill, but rather the opposite. He did what he had to, and she couldn't blame him for that.  
>Besides, he had saved her from losing her life by sacrificing his own. What price was that to pay? Would she be able to do this alone? They had existed to live side by side in harmony with each other. Would she be able to manage by herself?<br>She would, she decided. The princeps had done all he could do to make sure that they had a future. He freed eleven of her subjects out of the research facility, and even though it was against her will and knowledge at the time, established a secure foundation for generations to come. And for that she was grateful. Hid deeds would never be forgotten, she would make sure of that. She would see to it that his memory lasted on.  
>A loud thump made her look up from the body of the dead princeps. The Diclonius she had sent after the killer had returned with their captive, throwing him on the ground in a heap. They enclosed him in a semi-circle, all poised to tear him to shreds. But they would have to wait.<br>The man looked up, and Kaede recognized him. The hatred which had been boiling already, made her feel as if she would burst. She had seen him before, on a dark and stormy night at the beach. He was the one who had knocked Kohta down, who had dragged her to a fishing hut, and beat her, yelling at her to fight back. And fight back she did. It seemed as though he recalled that night's events as well.  
>She walked over to him, and planted her bare feet firmly on the ground, standing directly over him, as she had done back then. He seemed to know what was coming. Unfortunately, Kaede couldn't do it this time. She had lost control of her vectors, and felt them dragging on the ground behind her. They were useless for killing, useless for anything.<br>"Nana" she hissed.  
>Nana slowly looked out from behind Kaede's tall form.<br>"Y-yes?" she asked timidly.  
>"Make him suffer." She commanded, her voice a whisper.<br>Nana looked at the man and her eyes widened. Bando's face, which had displayed defiance before, now showed shock as he stared back at Nana.  
>"Not you too"<br>Kaede didn't know what meant, nor did she care.  
>"Nana, hurt him."<br>Nana backed away, averting her eyes from Bando.  
>"I…I can't…please."<br>Kaede was about to lose her patience and slap Nana in the face with her normal hands.  
>"Do it. Or I'll kill you."<br>Nana shook slightly as she approached Bando, sprawled out on the ground. She took one look at him, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.  
>"I'm…I'm so sorry."<br>The two vectors controlling her prosthetic legs let go, and gripped both of Bando's arms, restraining him. Meanwhile, Kaede still looked down at the helpless man with disdain and hate in her eyes.  
>"I see you got back your arm…and your eyes. Let's continue from where I left off. Nana, rip his arms off, both of them, but leave the eyes, I want him to see this."<br>Nana had no choice but to obey.  
>"I'm sorry" she murmured again, and looked away.<br>Nana's vectors pulled both of Bando's arms off. The bionic arm broke at the elbow, the metal and wiring unable to withstand the force. The other arm, which was still organic, was pulled right out of its socket, tearing skin, flesh, muscle and sinew in the process.  
>Bando yelled in pain as blood spurted from his shoulder.<br>Kaede continued on, mercilessly.  
>"Now take his legs too, Nana."<br>Before Nana could react, Lena spoke.  
>"Regina, may I? I think I could teach this puny human a little more."<br>Kaede frowned. Nothing that they could do to him would ever equal the loss they had to endure, but Nana was not delivering the message that she was supposed to.  
>"Just do it" she replied.<br>Lena smiled and approached Bando. Two of her vectors grabbed him around the chest and hoisted him up into the air, where he hung, dripping blood.  
>"You said 'legs' right?" Lena asked.<br>Kaede narrowed her eyes in response. One of the remaining vectors hummed through the air, and sliced cleanly through Bando's thighs. The severed limbs fell to the ground. Bando meanwhile had fallen unconscious.  
>"Aww…" Lena looked disappointed.<br>"Wake him up!" Kaede hissed.  
>Lena tossed the limp form up into the air, and let it smack to the ground, then did the same again, and again. Each time there were several distinct cracks, as bones broke.<br>Bando was conscious again, but delirious from the blood loss. His face was swollen, and his eyes drooping.  
>Kaede picked up the gun that had fallen out of Bando's pocket and checked the chambers. There was a single bullet left, but it was all she needed. She approached him, standing tall over his diminished shape, and pointed the gun directly at his head. After a few seconds, he noticed and tried to sneer at her. Several of his teeth were missing.<br>"What?" he croaked "Had enough fun yet?"  
>She stayed silent.<br>"What do you think you're gonna do now, huh? You think we'll just give up like that? We'll fight to the end, and we'll kill you all, no matter how many of us have to die in exchange."  
>Kaede was unimpressed by Bando's threats to her species.<br>"I will populate this earth, and we will bring humanity to extinction, starting with you."  
>She fired.<p>

* * *

><p>Yuka, Kohta and Mayu sat in a packed train, heading away as far from Kamakura as possible, fleeing from the slaughter. Kohta hadn't gotten over leaving Nyu behind and depressed and morose, refusing to speak to anyone.<br>Mayu sat quietly, in her seat with her dog on her lap, dozing off from time to time.  
>Yuka sat with her hand supporting her chin, gazing out the window at the countryside, lost in thought.<br>_I really wonder what's going to happen now. Will there be a war, and if yes, who'll win? I want that we can survive, but I don't want Nyu and the rest to die. I'm afraid that one doesn't go with the other though. We can't we just leave in peace, and accept each other as we are? I guess it just won't be. They are bloodthirsty killers by nature, and most of the time they completely lack empathy._  
>She sighed<br>_In a way, they're more like us than they seem._  
>She suddenly remembered something.<br>_How does Ageno want to take over the world in an all-out war with just the few supporters he has? He made it sound like he has an army ready, but that can't be right…right?_

* * *

><p>Lelia suddenly jerked up in bed, having woken from a very bad dream. The room was dark and she was very scared. It felt like she wasn't alone. Like her dream had been real.<br>"Mama!" she cried "Mama!"  
>A few moments later the door to her room burst open, flooding it with light and her mother entered, concern on her face. She went to the side of Lelia's bed and held her tight.<br>"Shh…" she said, rocking Lelia back and forth, then looked into her eyes. "I'm here sweetie."  
>For a moment there was nothing, then puzzlement showed on Leila's face.<br>"No…no, not you?"  
>"Huh?"<br>Her torso was cut on half, spilling blood all over the floor and the bed sheets. Leila got up, stepping over the corpse of her mother and left the room.  
>"I'm going to find my real Mama."<p>

* * *

><p>They were teasing her, making her angry.<br>"Hey freak! You want this?" the boy waved her hat around in the air. "You want to hide that you're a mutant?"  
>He tossed her hat to his friend.<br>She touched the horns protruding from her skull and tried to cover them up with her hands.  
>"Give it back!" she pleaded "Give it back!"<br>But they just laughed.  
>She rushed at the boy who had her hat, but he just held it high in the air so that she couldn't reach.<br>"Haha! You gotta do better than that!"  
>He tripped her, and she fell to the ground, banging her head hard on the tar surface of the school yard.<br>They laughed and pointed at her, as she got up again. She just stood there for a moment, head bowed, her hands to her ears.  
>"What's the matter?" they jeered "Lost the will to fight?"<br>She turned her head to them and smiled.  
>"The fight has just begun."<br>They barely had time to realize what she said, before their necks twisted backwards, further than they were ever supposed to go, and snapped. The lifeless corpses of the four boys fell to the ground.  
>She took one look at the hat, still clutched in one of the bodies' hands.<br>"No longer"


End file.
